Collision
by killah-sama
Summary: [Yuugi.is.ignored story] Yuugi learns that both friends and enemies can change when he's traded in for the stronger, BETTER him. Join him as confessions, apologies, and refusals unravel the weavings of what's really going on.
1. Prologue: Discovery

Warning: strong-ish language

**/ - With Yuugi - /**

The bitter scowl of his face darkened. The door clanged shut, taking with it all the sunlight that streamed in through its threshold. Muffles voices streamed in through the wood. _Clang_ The room was completely dark, devoid of light, and as silent as night itself, although it was apparent that noon had only just surfaced. The scowl melted into a frown.

Were they out again? Ra…the fifth day in a row.

Yuugi shook his head and screwed his eyes shut in an attempt to block out the world. Memories flooded into his mind as torrents of a rushing stream. It was funny. All the memories that burnt into his eyelids were of him. He was giggling, smiling, chatting…being Yuugi Motou. Damn them all. Yuugi knew that lies were nothing to dwell on. Damn those memories. It was all lies.

Amethyst eyes snapped open. Yes, lies. Yuugi did not giggle- he chuckled darkly at peoples' stupidity and misfortunes. He did not smile- he smirked at his own little blood and gore-filled thoughts. He did not chat- he mostly stayed silent, save the time he took to badmouth people, swear at people, and plot alongside _chosen_ people. And he did not _be_ Yuugi Motou. He was no longer the preppy, little youth with the naïve innocence that obviously glittered around him.

Why, you ask? Because of _them_. Them. Jou, Anzu, Honda, Ryou, Malik... and Yami. Ever since Yami had managed to acquire a physical body of his own, they had all begun to drift away from the violet-eyed tenshi...and closer to the said dark. Why, damn it, _why_?

But it wasn't like he needed them- anymore. He had his own _friends_, if you could call them that.

Ah- speak of the devil(s). Yuugi grinned- a devil-like grin, really, with his fang-like teeth bared. The door burst open, blasted right off its hinges. There was a glint in the darkness, and a whirring hum, much like a blade slicing through air. Raising an eyebrow, Yuugi lifted his right arm up, fingers hovering over her eyes. Ah- he should have known.

A dribble of blood dripped down his wrist from where the seven-inch blade had cut into his palm. He held his hand up in front of his face, putting it against the sunlight that blasted in through the doorway, making it look like his hand was actually glowing.

Elegant eyebrow still raised, he lowered his hand and cleared his throat. "What kind of greeting is that?"

A distorted voice, thick with malice and satisfaction, filled the air. "The one of your one and only Thief King, Baku-Baku-chan."

Yuugi could not see his visitors, seeing that they had not entered the house yet, but he could definitely tell what they were doing. There were noises of metal against flesh, metal against metal, metal falling to the ground, and finally metal against flesh again. He could only guess dear Baku-Baku-chan and the infamous Marikku were outside, and the Thief was slashing Marik shitless with a knife/dagger/blade/razor/kantana. But of course, what muffled things he could hear also gave it away.

"Do not EVER in your ENTIRE life call me 'Baku-Baku-chan,' you worthless piece of crap!"

"Baku-chan, then?" Another metal against flesh noise- three quick slashes, actually. "Damn."

"Come on in," Yuugi called out, still on his seat on the couch.

And predictably, Bakura "Baku-Baku-chan" Ryou and Marik "Marikku" Ishtar walked in- erk- well Marik limped, but that doesn't really matter.

"Damn, midget, who turned out the lights?"

"Well, I had a feeling you'd be coming. If the lights were _on_, then I'd have the punishment of seeing your face, 'Kura," Yuugi replied idly.

Like the thief he was (or was _supposed_ to be), Bakura appeared in a flash in back of the couch Yuugi was lounging in. He gripped the smaller teen by the crown of bi-colored hair and lifted him up a few inches, so that they were eye-to-eye, and gave him his darkest glare. It slowly melted into a wicked smirk. "So the midget's gained a backbone, eh?"

Yuugi glared back, biting his lower lip.

And then as if this were normal, they both burst out in dark laughter. Beacause yes, this was normal.

Bakura dropped Yuugi back onto the couch and hopped over its high back. "Oh, and you can't call me 'Kura either, pipsqueak." He delivered a blow on the younger teen's cheek that would have made even Ushio stumble.

Yuugi winced and rubbed the spot. "Ah, well, you can't have everything in life, can ya?"

"_Terribly_ sorry to ruin the love scene, guys, but not everyone here appreciates your-"

"Go fuck yourself," Bakura retorted.

Marik rolled his eyes and limped over to a loveseat opposite to Yuugi and Bakura. He just stared at the two vaguely, and they stared back.

"This is ludicrous," the platnium gold-haired yami sneered. "Are we just going to sit here all day?"

"We can go to the ice cream parlor- I mean- to the... park."

Yuugi stared strangely at the albino yami. "Did you just say you wanted to go to the ice cream-?" He was interrupted when the albino picked him up by the hood of his sweatshirt and hauled him over the back of the couch.

"C'mon, squirt, we're going to the...park."

Marik, however, was quietly guffawing at Bakura's little _slip_. He strode alongside Bakura and Yuugi (who was still being carried by the scruff of his neck by Bakura) as they all walked out the door. The fallen door, which was still on the ground, collecting dust, was given no heed and they all hopped into Marik's jeep, Yuugi squirming, feet still inches off the ground ("Damn it, you ass, I can't freakin' breathe.").

**/ - With Yami - /**

Was it him, or was Yuugi getting morbid? He had never really noticed it before, because he was always out with his new friends, but he had just realized Yuugi looked darker than before. He always wore black, baggy clothing, instead of the usual dark blue and black leather they both usually wore. Come to think of it, black, baggy clothing was known throughout America (from what he had heard from Jou, who had lived in New York for over half his life) as 'gangsta' clothing. And these 'gangsters' usually shot people. Wait- this was Yuugi he was talking about. The little boy wouldn't hurt a fly.

But still, the way he acted just before Yami left the house made him shudder.

_Yami just realized how dark and silent it was. With his hand still resting on the doorknob, he looked over his shoulder. He jumped. "Yuugi?" And yes, there was Yuugi. He was sitting on the couch, in the dark, tossing something silver up into the air, and catching it again._

_When the younger teen heard Yami, he quickly grabbed the thing out of mid-air and hid it behind his back. He looked guilty for a moment, but retorted in a low, un-Yuugi-like way, "No, I'm your reflection. Don't you remember stickin' a mirror in the middle of the living room?"_

_"Um..." Was he joking? "Er...why are you sitting in the dark?" Yami asked. He had a few minutes to spare before the gang would come. It just occurred to him that maybe Yuugi would want to come. Would he?_

_"I like the dark," came the short, cold reply._

_"Say, we're all going out, to just hang, and yeah... Do you want to come?"_

_"No." Why was he acting so distant?_

_"Are you sure you don't want to come?"_

_"Are you sure you don't need a hearing aid?" Why was he acting so rude?_

_"Yams!" came the yell from outside. "Yo, Yams! Hurry it up, would ya?" Jou was calling him 'Yams' again. Oh joy._

_"Well...I'm going now."_

_"I've inferred that."_

_"Bye-"_

_"Just go. Shut the door when you're out." Ouch. That one had hurt._

_Yami turned away and opened the door. He stepped out. Should he do something about Yuugi? Yami's eyes traveled over to Honda's ride. Everyone had managed to squish in (Ra only knows how; it was a convertible) and they were all waving for him to hurry up. A smile twitched on the yami's lips. He would get to Yuugi later_.

"Yami!" Anzu's voice snapped him from his reverie.

"Hai?"

"C'mon! Everyone's by the lake already."

Yami shuddered. Last time he had gone to the park lake, he had fallen into the water. Oh the humiliation of drowning in garbage-infested muck... "Okay then, Anzu." He followed her to the lake, carefully edging away from the water's edge as he did.

The entire gang was there. Jou was sopping wet, dripping in what looked suspiciously like the park lake's garbage-infested muck, and Honda was splashed from his chest to his knees in it, too. Ryou was leaning on Malik for support, for he was laughing his ass off, but Malik was off no better.

Yami arched an eyebrow. Anzu giggled and intertwined his arm in hers. They strolled towards the group and watched in disgusted humor as Jou and Honda wrung out their shirts.

Suddenly, Ryou and Malik stopped laughing.

Yami, surprised by their sudden change, unlatched Anzu from his arm and stared off in the direction where the two hikaris were staring. He caught his breath and snapped, "Shut up, everyone. Look!"

Honda stopped giving Jou a headlock, and Jou stopped elbowing the brunette's stomach. They looked over.

All the way on the other side of the lake was Bakura, Marik...and YUUGI? Oh dear Ra, there was Yuugi, standing _beside_ the Thief.

Yami growled. What were those two doing next to his hikari? His aibou?

"C'mon, let's go," Ryou said, his voice edged with anger.

"I want to see what they're doing to my aibou!" Yami cried.

"That's what we're going to do, baka," Malik snapped. He grabbed Yami by the Puzzle and dragged him to a tree about a quarter the way to the three people.

"Let go of my Puzzle, little petty thief-"

"Shut up, Yami," Ryou snapped in an un-Ryou way. _He_ grabbed Yami by his spikes and pulled him the rest of the length to the two yamis and hikari. Well not _to_, for the trio had moved over to a clearing behind a park bench, where there were sakura trees and thick hedges. A perfect place, in Yami's opinion, for the hedges served as a sufficient hiding spot.

Yami and the two hikaris ducked down behind the shrubs nearest to their counterparts. They peered in through a hole in the leaves when a _flump_ sound reached their ears. Ryou looked over and sweatdropped.

Jou was spread eagle on his stomach, with Anzu sitting contentedly on his back. Honda was scratching his head and apparently wondering if he should intervene.

Malik rolled his eyes and beckoned them all over. The three were in perfect view of Bakura, Marik, and Yuugi if they glanced in their direction.

There were some quiet yelping, shoving, and leaves falling off the hedge before the group of six was finally in place. Yami was getting impatient. "Okay- you're all in your places. So _shut up_ and let me listen."

Yuugi was standing idly in his baggy black jeans and sweatshirt with his hands in his pocket. Marik was yelling something about 'stupid bakas' and whapping Bakura with a 'Do Not Feed Ducks' sign. Bakura was laughing maniacally, trying to block the blows.

"Hey, at least I know how to smuggle an AK 47 in from the good old U.S. Ain't that right, Yuu-chan?" The albino yami reached over and grabbed the hood of Yuugi's sweater, hauling him over closer to the two.

Yami growled possessively.

Yuugi squirmed. "Oh, now I'm Yuu-chan, am I?" He pulled himself from Bakura's grip and crossed his arms. "Gee thanks, _Baku-Baku-chan_."

Yami gasped. 'Yuu-can'? 'Baku-Baku-Kura-chan'? What was up with THAT?

"I told you not to call me that," Bakura snarled, eyes glinting malevolently.

The fist flew at Yuugi's gut so quickly Yami and the gang couldn't see it. They did see the aftermath. Yuugi went flying a foot or two and into Marik. They both collapsed into the ground. The six behind the hedges all gasped in surprise, everyone but Ryou and Malik too preoccupied with the fact that Yuugi was hit to see the genuine grin on the young duelist's face. The two hikaris exchanged confused glances.

"Get off me, runt," Marik said, pushing himself up and grabbing Yuugi by his hood so that they were both up- Yuugi a few inches off the ground.

Yuugi squirmed like he had with Bakura. "What is with everyone and grabbing me by my hood?"

"Hn," Bakura mused, "we're trying to make you grow."

Yuugi rolled his eyes and twisted out of Marik's hold. "Bastards..." he muttered.

Yami gasped. Since when did his aibou swear?

Bakura laughed. "Damned midget."

"I'm only a...foot...shorter than you," Yuugi defended indignantly as he held up his right hand, picking unconcernedly at his nails.

Marik howled in response. "A foot? Dear Ra!" His eyes traveled over to Yuugi's hand.

Yami looked at it too. Red. There was blood seeping out through his hand. What had those damned darks done to his light?

Marik grinned fiendishly. He slid over to Yuugi and grabbed the younger teen's wrist. He ran a thumb across Yuugi's cut, grin widening when crimson-colored blood dyed the finger red. Without warning, he slid his tongue over his thumb, licking the blood off it.

Yuugi arched an eyebrow, whilst Bakura laughed at his face.

"Vampire," Yuugi said, wrenching his wrist from Marik's grip.

"Elf," Marik countered simply.

"Demon."

"Nymph."

"Dragon."

"Starfish."

"Albino!"

Marik and Yuugi stared at Bakura, who grinned as sheepishly as a person with fangs could. The albino yami rubbed the back of his neck as Ryou sweatdropped.

"Is that my yami?" Ryou whispered more to himself than to anyone else.

"C'mon, Oh Great Demonic Vampire of the Dragons, erm..._'Albino'_, we've been at this _happy_ place too long."

"Aye-aye, uh… Nymphotic, Starfishy Elf-kid…?" Marik experimented, making a totally ass of himself.

Bakura ignored Yuugi's new, stupid name and nodded. Both he and Marik locked eyes over Yuugi's head and cracked into identical grins. They each grabbed Yuugi by his hood and dragged him, so that the teen's feet were trailing along after him, out of the clearing ("Lemme go. Argh- _no one_ grows like this, bakas!").

When the rustling of leaves and grass and Yuugi's indignant protests faded away, Yami and the gang leapt up angrily. "What were they doing with my aibou? They have corrupted him! Who gave them the right to touch him? Drag him by the hood? They could have choked him! I will Mind Crush them so bad-" He looked over at Malik and Ryou.

Ryou looked broodingly at his shoelaces as Malik kicked a tree trunk nearby. "I don't get why he was hanging out with them," he thought aloud as a shower of leaves decended upon his head.

"You don't? I do! They've brainwashed him! I'll bet they threatened him or something!"

'Then why was he smiling...?' both Ryou and Malik thought.

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

Killah: OOC-ness for all. /huggles Yuugi/

Yuugi: Yo foo', hands off da merchandise. /jingles 'bling bling'/

Killah: T.T Not _that_ OOC...

**Okay**- there is no threatening, blackmailing, or tricking of any sort in Yuugi's decision to befriend Marik and Bakura. The end. Next chapter comes out in a year and three months. /grins/

**2,560** words! SCORE! I'm surprised, actually. This is the first fic that I've typed up without writing it in a notebook. O.o I just sat down, started typing, and BAM- here it is…

**Um**…reviews, please? If you don't understand something (I tend to confuse people because my stuff don't make sense…o.o), or you want to point out my faults (so, so many… /shakes head/), drop a review! I need a genre. First I'll type out the second chapter and figure out a plot (I don't have one yet… o.o;;). Then I'll ask you guys what you think the genre should be. For now, I'll keep it general. And if you think the title sucks, join the club. /is in the club/ Suggest one if you wish. /huggles/ Tell me to stop if you hate the story. Now I must jet. JA. /wink/


	2. Communication

**Slave Of Darkness**  
Gee- thanks for the comment. /huggles/ Sorry- I don't write yaoi. It's okay to ask, of course. It seems pretty pro-yaoi, though, huh? What with Yuugi and Marik's arguing like an old married couple (if old married couples call each other demons/vampires/dragons and elves/nymphs/starfish o.o;;), and Yuugi and Bakura all…bwoosh. Hah hah… Though I do like Yuugi/Bakura fics (/giggles like a rabid yaoi fan girl/), I don't write it.

**DreamCherry66**  
/giggle/ That's because I love Yuugi-chan _soooooo_ much/glomps him/ Aw hee hee hee… And though it isn't very well known, unique is a synonym for special. /grins cheekily/ S-p-e-c-i-a-l. /wink, wink, nudge, nudge/ The special kind of special, ne? … Virtual ice cream/cookies/whatever-doesn't-cause damage, eh? That's too bad because… /sneak attack and steals virtual dagger/ I have stolen a dagger. /insane laughter/ Meep… /gets attacks by rabid squirrels/ No! Not Mr. Daggy! Gr…fine. But I'm _keeping_ my pitchfork. /huff/ Here's the next chappie!

**Hikari Skysong  
**Yay! I like OOC-ness. It shows…new character in characters. /sheepish grin/ Thanks for the review! Here's more. /throws chappie at HS/

**/ - With Yuugi - /**

Yuugi rubbed his neck wearily. Those guys sucked. But really, they were pretty cool if you took the time to know them. He let a genuine chuckle escape from his mouth. He wouldn't let _anyone_ hear him say that about them. He would never hear the end of it.

He walked up the walkway to the house, grinning lightly at the door, which was still flat on the ground. Marik had the annoying 'habit' of knocking things down whenever he felt impatient, or even when he was just plain bored. Yuugi sighed contentedly as he lifted the door up with both of his hands. He groaned as he heaved it up, only lifting it up three of four inches.

"Damn midget strength…" he murmured to himself, letting it flop back down with a loud snap. "I'll just give Yami some crap about a hurricane that only cornered our house. He'd believe that, I'm sure."

Yuugi stepped over the fallen door and into the house. Darkness shrouded his used-to-the-sun eyesight. "Damn. I do sit in the dark to often," he mused to himself, searching for the light switch, fumbling not to knock the photos off the wall as his fingers grazed it.

"Yuugi."

Yuugi jumped, barely restraining himself from yelling out profanities. His hand jerked and his fingers somehow switched the light on. He slowly turned.

There sat Yami, seated regally in the loveseat. His legs were crossed comfortably, and his hands were cupped over his knees.

Yuugi bit back the urge to snap something rude at his darkness, but he settled with "Yes?"

Yuugi swore in his head. Yami was seated in the loveseat. Marik was sitting in the loveseat earlier. Marik was also bleeding due to the…stabbing…Bakura gave him. Needless to say, Yami was sitting in a bloodstained loveseat.

"Where have you been?"

"Out."

"Out where?"

"Just out."

Yami arched an eyebrow up. "Out with who?" he inquired.

"Friends," Yuugi stated shortly.

"Who are these 'friends' of yours?"

Yuugi sighed in exasperation. "Ugh- Yami, why do you want to know all of a sudden? You never did before! Just lay off, okay? We both know you don't really care. You're probably just thinking in your mind about glorious _sand_, and lofty _pyramids_. Aren't you? You are, aren't you? Yes, Pharaoh-sama. There you are, sitting atop your throne, taking people's lives, and doing whatever the hell else pharaohs do. Just lay off!"

Yuugi stormed off. He stomped off, in through the kitchen, and out the back door.

**/ - With Yami - /**

Yami stared after his hikari. What was with the outburst? His hikari seemed so angry. Why, though? What was it that he said?

Shaking his head in confusion, Yami stood up. He leather attire stuck to the leather of the loveseat slightly and he looked down at it with perplexity. Dried, sticky red liquid contrasted with white, rawhide leather. Yami gasped in horror. Blood? His aibou's blood, maybe?

Yami swore under his breath, clawing at the patches of dried blood. The sticky substance stuck into the insides of his nails. Those sadistic bastards had hurt his aibou! If they oh-so-casually hit him out in public, who knew what they had don't to him in the confines of an enclosed house? It all made sense- piece by piece, the puzzle was completed by the oh-so-smart-and-charming (/gags on words and dies/) pharaoh. The dark red stuff drizzled on the walls of the porch and the doormat, the door knocked off its hinges, and the blood on the leather loveseat. Yuugi's blood was spilled that day, and maybe even more days, by those darks, because Yami was too busy with his new life to pay attention.

They sure didn't brainwash him into being their 'friend.' They had obviously threatened him. Ah- his brave aibou. He had tried to refuse the call of 'friendship', because he knew Yami would never approve. But, oh gods, Yami mused, that meant Yuugi was punished. Right here, on this piece of furniture, and outside the door. It was Yami's entire fault! In his attempt to stay loyal to his yami, Yuugi had been hurt.

Not to worry, he told himself. He would definitely make it up to his partner. Those darks would pay, if he got his way. No one threatened his devoted hikari, and then attacked him until he submitted to their call. No one.

Yami strode away from the bloodied loveseat, to the phone. He racked out the phone book and looked up _Malik Ishtar_.

**/ - With Malik - /**

Malik entered his house, vaguely seeing the couch as he flopped onto it. Only one thought spun through his head: why was Yuugi hanging out with his and Ryou's yamis? You see, Malik, unlike the rest of the group, was aware of the fact that the smaller teen was being ignored. He wanted to include him- really, he did- but he was too caught up in being accepted and having his first group of friends to. Now, Yuugi was lost to the two darks, caught up in their webs.

Well, Malik wasn't as stupid as Yami. He saw the grin on Yuugi's face when he was _'attacked'_ by Bakura. Somehow, in some sort of crazed situation, the young duelist chose this company, and enjoyed it.

_BRIIIIIIIIIING!_

"Malik?" Isis' voice rang in through the den. "Get the phone, please."

_BRIIIIIIIIIING!_

Malik only grunted in response.

_BRIIIIIIIIIING!_

"Malik?"

_BRIIIIIIIIIING!_

Grunt.

_BRIIIIIIIIIING!_

"MALIK! GET THE DAMN PHONE BEFORE I CASTRATE YOUR ASS OFF."

Malik jumped. "Fine!" he yelled back. He picked the phone up off the receiver. "There! Happy?"

"Very."

Malik rolled his eyes. "You have reached the Ishtar residence, and this is Malik Ishtar. Whatever it was, I didn't do it. To whom am I speaking?"

( -- "Malik, you baka, it's me, Yami." -- )

"Hi."

( --"Yes, hi. I called because I have made a startling discovery! Marik and Bakura, for reasons unknown, threatened Yuugi to be their friend. Yuugi, being the loyal hikari he is, refused. Of course, they resorted to violence. Finally, he had no choice but to submit, and that's what happened. That's why Yuugi fraternizes with those darks." -- )

Malik blinked. "And you know this…how…?"

( -- "Well, I saw blood on the format and on the loveseat, and the door was knocked off its hinges." -- )

Malik blinked again. "So you've inferred that story from blood and a fallen door?"

( -- "Yes." -- )

"From that?"

( -- "Yes!" -- )

"I think you're wrong, Yami."

( -- "But a Pharaoh is never wrong-" -- )

"Then you're still wrong. You _were_ a pharaoh. Now you're just a regular, modern-day teen. If you look like closely at Yuugi, don't you see happiness? I've been watching him. I must seem like one ass of a friend, but I knew what he was like after you got your own body, and before Marik and Bakura. He was miserable! Didn't you see him slouching around school? And how the bullies came back? He barely stopped them by bringing a knife to school to protect himself. Get it through your head, Yami. Yuugi was being ignored, so he became friends with my and Ryou's yamis. No torture, blackmail, or punishment; no nothing. They're real friends, so we have to learn to live with it."

It was silent, and Malik thought Yami had hung up. Then, ( -- "No, Malik. You're wrong! He was avoiding us because he had to study all the time. We didn't ignore him." -- )

Malik gave a bark of dark laughter. "Is that what he told you? Jeez- you sure are dense…"

( -- "It's the truth! Now you've got to help me destroy Marik and Bakura." -- )

"Then Yuugi wouldn't have any friends, you baka."

( -- "He has us!" -- )

"He doesn't want us! He hates us! I mean- I would hate us too if I were in his position."

( -- "He doesn't hate us! That's my point! He hates Bakura and Marik for extorting his friendship!" -- )

"GET IT THROUGH YOUR HEAD, PHARAOH NO BAKA! YUUGI CHOSE TO BE-FUCKING-FRIEND THEM!"

The line was silent again.

( -- "You really think so?" -- )

"I _know_ so."

( -- "Well…what do I do to get him back?" -- )

Malik shrugged, then remembered Yami couldn't see him. "I'm not good at this sentimental crap," he replied doubtfully. "But I know someone who is." His index finger hovered undecidedly over the button pad of the receiver.

"Hn…"

( -- "What are you doing?" -- )

"Shh."

He pressed the 3-way button and dialed in seven numbers.

**/ - With Yuugi - /**

Yuugi burst out from the back door, into the backyard, not ceasing his running until he reached the giant oak tree by their fence. Why had he blurted all that out? Yami was sure to be suspicious of him now. But, Yuugi reminded himself, he had a reason to snap at him. Yami was just being too interfering. But really, Yuugi wondered, why was he so interested all of a sudden? He never was, as he had yelled. Yami never cared. Why now?

Yuugi sighed and shuddered at the sudden deepening of wind. A leaf floated down from the oak and smacked him in the face. He sweatdropped and stomped on it. The wind intensified and Yuugi felt himself shivering violently.

_Damn wind…so cocky…thinks it's so great…_ Yuugi sighed again. He could just walk back into the house again, couldn't he? Yes, but Yami was in there. And after that sudden outburst, it would be absolutely _humiliating_ to walk back in there because it was _cold_.

But the damn wind was too cold. Yuugi gave in and slouched back to the back door. He slowly pushed it ajar and stepped onto the cool tile of the kitchen floor. With painstaking silence and skill, he edged against the wall as he traveled through the living room where Yami was to the stairs. Luckily, the baka was on the phone and paid him no heed.

Yuugi managed to make it to the top of the stairs without making a single sound. It paid to be a thief's friend, he noted. He was about to take a step towards his room when Malik's static-y voice filled the air.

"GET IT THROUGH YOUR HEAD, PHARAOH NO BAKA! YUUGI CHOSE TO BE-FUCKING-FRIEND THEM!"

Yuugi stepped back and stood frozen. Yami was talking about him with Malik. They knew about Marik and Bakura. Why else would Malik be yelling that out? Oh no…they knew. No one was supposed to know. Yami and the gang would be angry. Not that Yuugi cared, or anything. It was just nice to have friends. Now, knowing his yami, Yuugi would end up friendless, because the pharaoh was most likely to kill/Mind Crush Bakura and Marik. Ah…so that was why Yami was so infatuated with Yuugi's day.

Yuugi sighed. What should he do now? Tell Bakura and Marik that his vengeful yami was after them because he knew of their friendship? Hn…knowing _them_, blood, screaming, and running around in circles would be involved as a result. He could either do that, or listen to the phone call. Hn…the latter was a more agreeable choice.

**/ - With Ryou - /**

_"Albino!" Bakura yelled, obviously left out from the spar of name-calling between Marik and Yuugi. He grinned sheepishly- if you could evencall it a sheepish expression- and rubbed the back of his neck as Marik, Yuugi, and everyone from behind the hedge stared at him strangely._

Ryou sighed, fingering the pointers of his Millennium Ring, from his lying position on the couch. What was it about Yuugi that made everyone so happy and carefree? Take himself for an example. Before Yuugi, Ryou had been a dark teen. He had wallowed in self-pity over the death of his mother and sister while brooding over his father's neglect. Yuugi taught him to be optimistic and happier, taking life one step at a time and living with all of its hardships. Sure, Yuugi had his ways; it was a fact…but Bakura?

Ryou had thought his yami were a lost soul, neither untamable by man nor magic. His yami, the sadistic creep who wallowed in the glory of darkness and its blood-lusting inhabitants, had never been the happy type. Sure, there were times the dark smirked, but those never counted. True happiness meant enjoying something _without_ blood or torture. But there he was, in the park clearing, with Marik and _Yuugi_ of all people, smiling, laughing, and joking around.

To unfamiliar eyes, this would have seemed like something dark and violent, their laughing and joking around, but to Ryou, this was the happiest he had ever seen Bakura. And it was because of Yuugi. Yuugi had somehow _domesticated _his yami, without any violence whatsoever. Ryou applauded the smaller teen's actions.

But inside, there was envy bubbling in the pit of his stomach. Ryou had known the spirit for more than half his life, and he had been the same. The same darkness who loved the blood, the gore, and the torture. Then there was Yuugi, a newbie to the spirit's inflicting pain. And how did the dark treat him? He joked along with him, as if he were a second, shorter Marik.

Ryou was glad he didn't have to deal with a violent yami, but green envy clouded the relief. He sort of…wanted…to be in Yuugi's place. After all, if Yuugi and Yami got along so well, he believed he and his yami should. But Yuugi had already befriended Bakura, and they had become fast friends. Ryou wanted a real relationship with his yami, where they would talk, and duel side-by-side, like Yuugi and Yami, not just the assurance of knowing the other was alive.

Ryou sighed again. He had lost his chance.

_BRIIIIIIIIIING!_

The phone rang. Ryou lay on the couch unmoving, letting the answer machine take the call.

"Hallo, you have reached the house of Ryou Bakura. I'm not here right now, so if you want me to call you back, leave your name and phone number after the tone. Ja!"

( "Ryou?" ) Malik's voice projected from the automatic machine. ( "It's me, Malik. Me and Yami were talking about the scene at the park, and- " )

Ryou made a mad scrabble to the phone and fell off the couch. He recovered in a rush and grabbed the phone.

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Killah: Well, there you go! Another chapter done just for you (all of you o.o). I'm getting myself confused in this mucky excuse for a story… Too many feelings! Noooo… /dies/ Too many feelings to bare… Yuugi is worried, Yami is misled, then confused, Malik is calculating, and Ryou is jealous. Too complicated… /dies again/ x-X

**Ryou's **situation is not meant to be taken in a yaoi-ish manner, no matter how pro-yaoi it is. He just wants a relationship with his yami that doesn't involve violence, but something more than just knowing the other is just _there_. If you want to picture it as yaoi, go ahead. /sheepish grin/

**2,402** words. This chapter is tainted by notebook-y-ness… I wrote Malik's POV in a notebook when I was bored. NOTEBOOK-Y-NESS!

**Review** or I'll blast your head off with my red-buttoned detonator. /maniacal laughter/ As I said in chapter one, I'm looking for a genre. Now that I've got a second, feeling-filled (/gags and dies/) chapter, I'd appreciate suggestions for what you would categorize this story. If you want me to keep it general, just tell me. Now I must jet again… o-O Ja!

**HAH! It's November 19 and I've finally made the entire story completely horizontal scrollbar-free/cackles insanely/ About time, too. >X I've always hated those **


	3. Tension

**Kat1132**  
I know. -.- I don't like Yami, so he's like that. /grins/ Here's a spoiler-that-I-don't-really-think-counts-as-a-spoiler: he goes stupid again in the spur of a certain moment and…/blank spot/ In a weird kind of way, ne? That's awesome. /chants/ Weirdness! WEIRDness! WEIRDNESS! Thanks for the review! Here's the chappie!

**Sirithiliel  
**Oooh! Thanks a lot! Baku-chan rocks, doesn't he? Heh… /grins and runs from Bakura, who is chasing with a dagger/ I guess he doesn't like the name…

**DreamCherry66  
**Romance? You really think so? 'Cause I'm not really putting any quixotic pairings in here. Drama, eh? I'll think about it. Whoa…that's creepy. O-O Like you're some sort of psychic or something… /goggles/ Yeah, so do I. If I really like 'em! But if the title's long, or complicated, I just bookmark 'em. /giggles/ Thanks for the review! Here's da chappie!

**Slave Of Darkness  
**Yeah, Bakura/Yuugi is just too cute to resist. /has a rant on profile why/ o-O I am strange… Anywhais— thanks for the story. I'll check out Alone. I've finished it and added it to my favorites. Ahem… Well actually, I made it so Ryou was agreeing with rest of the gang (save Malik). He agreed with the gang's thoughts by thinking Yuugi had both Yami and Bakura, while in reality, Yami was ignoring Yuugi and Bakura and Marik were the only one who was there for him. He didn't realize he and the rest of them were ignoring Yuugi, but he learns it in this chapter. Don't worry. I don't make hikaris jerks. Just Yami. /glares at Yami/

(: "Malik speaking on the phone." :)  
(- "Yami speaking on the phone. -)  
(+ "Ryou speaking on the phone." +)

Warning: strong-ish language and _hints_ of shounen-ai that will not be elaborated on (random staring, sudden feelings: very, very low). Oh Ra…I can't believe I'm writing this chapter… /faints/ Forgive me if you oppose shounen-ai. Don't worry- it's just this chapter.

**/ - With Ryou - /**

"So what were you guys talking about before I came?" Ryou asked.

(: "Well, Pharaoh no baka-" :)

Yami growled through the line.

(: "-believed Yuugi was blackmailed by Marik and Bakura into being their friend." :)

There was a snort of laughter. Ryou wasn't sure who it was. (Gee- guess who it was. /cough/ Yuugi /uncough/ Shhh- don't tell them!)

(: "He thought they attacked Yuugi when he refused to be friends with them, then Yuugi gave in, and that's why they're all friends. But Yami wasn't given the title Pharaoh no baka for nothing. That was obviously wrong. I've converted him and he's got the right story now. :)

"Oh really?" Ryou raised an eyebrow. He didn't know. Yami's story sounded pretty plausible. "What's the real story?"

Yami huffed. (- "It seems Yuugi _chose_ to befriend Marik and Bakura." -)

"What? Malik, that's preposterous."

(: "Nuh-uh, Ryou. Tell me, remember the last three months?" :)

"Yes."

(: "Remember how we went out every single say in the last three months:)

"Yes."

(- "Where is this going?" -) Yami asked.

(: "Just let him answer the question," :) Malik snapped.

"Uh…you, me, Yami, Honda, Jou, and Anzu."

(: "Right. And where was Yuugi:)

(- "Yuugi wasn't there," -) Yami pointed out.

It clicked.

" (- "Yuugi wasn't there," -) " both Ryou and Yami said in simultaneous sync. Their voices held realization.

(: "Exactly," :) Malik said. (: "I rest my case." :)

"So what you're saying is that Yuugi, tired of being ignored by us for three months, befriended Maik and Bakura?"

(: "Bingo." :)

Ryou, although this was a bad situation, felt his stomach unknot. So Yuugi was getting his _just desserts_. He took Ryou's yami, so Ryou- and everyone else- took his. The jealousy inside faded away, replaced with sympathy. "We did this to him."

(- "I know," -) came Yami's grave voice. (- "Which is why I called you. I wanted to-" -)

_Click._

(- "Malik? Ryou?" -)

"I'm still here."

(: "Me, too." :)

But there was no mistaking the sound of a phone being put down.

**/ - With Yuugi - /**

The conversation was getting boring. So the three finally realized Yuugi's problem. Big deal. Yuugi knew that already. He quietly put the phone back onto its receiver.

Yuugi was about to tiptoe down the stairs when Yami's voice wavered up to him. "Yuugi?" the darkness called out cautiously. Footsteps stomped up the steps. "Yuugi?" he called out again. "Are you up there?"

Yuugi stood at the foot of his bed frozen, like a deer in the headlights. He thought fast. A quick escape…a quick escape… The window! Yuugi rushed to the window ledge and quietly slid it open. For once of the few times in his life, Yuugi was grateful to be short. He slipped of the window with no trouble and expertly slid down the gutter pipe.

Yuugi dropped to the ground and ran. He had no specific destonation in particular; he just ran.

**/ - With Yami - /**

Yami stomped up the stairs after calling Yuugi's name twice. Had he really been listening? Impossible. Yuugi had stormed out of the house after yelling at Yami. Then who was listening on an extending line? Malik had checked with Isis and Rishid, and Ryou confirmed that no one was home with him. It was just Yami left.

Yuugi's door stood ajar. Yami knew Yuugi had a phone in there.

The darkness warily pushed the door open, almost expecting Yuugi himself to jump out and attack him. Nothing; nothing was out of place. Sure, the window was open, but Yami highly doubted Yuugi would jump out a window to escape from him. (Stupid Yami… /growls/ NEVER underestimate Yuugi!)

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No one had been on a fourth line. The three had come to a conclusion that they had imagined it all. The subject at hand was brought back as Yami grabbed the phone again.

"Ahem. As I was saying before… Ryou, I want to know how to get Yuugi back from Marik and Bakura."

(+ "Wait…isn't he happy with them? Why do you want to get Yuugi back?" +)

(: "You're right. Well then, Yami wants to know how to get Yuugi's forgiveness." :)

"Hey, you don't speak for me." He cleared his throat. "So, Ryou…how do I regain Yuugi's forgiveness?"

Yami could almost hear Malik anime fall as Ryou thought.

(+ "I've got it! You just…" +)

**/ - With Yuugi : Monday Morning, School - /**

"Ishtar-san! What do you think you're doing?" the teacher screeched, slamming her hand down onto Marik's books.

"What does it look like I'm doing, Okin-sensei? Paying attention and quietly taking notes?"

In front of Marik, Bakura gave a loud, disruptive snort of laughter.

"It looks like you're writing notes to…" Okin grabbed the paper on Maik's desk and held it up to her face, eye scrunched up in an attempt to read Marik's illegible handwriting. "Baku-Baku-chan and Yuu-chan…?"

the entire class erupted in fits of laughter. Yuugi turned from his seat all the way in the front of the room at Marik from behind Okin's back. The laughter made perfect sense. Marik was viewed as one of the school's sadists (along with Yuugi (a newbie) and Bakura). It was certainly something to see him using names like 'Baku-Baku-chan' and 'Yuu-chan.'

'What'd he write?' Yuugi mouthed to Bakura.

Bakura relayed the message to Marik and turned back to Yuugi. 'Damn, this class's a bitch, ne?'

Yuugi sniggered loudly. He would have wanted to read that.

"Motou-san? Is there something funny about Ishtar-san getting a detention?"

Yuugi faked a thinking expression, tilting his head to the side and positioning his index finger to his bottom lip. "Uh…lemme think…other than him getting a detention…no."

"Detention, Motou-san. Laugh at that, won't you?" She turned around, quickly tucking Marik's note into the breast pocket of her jacket, walked back up to the board, and continued to lesson.

Yuugi scowled at her retreating back. He pulled both hands to his cheekbones, jiggled his fingers, and waggled his tongue at her.

Bakura laughed out loud, causing the entire class to swivel their heads in his direction.

Yuugi lowered his hands when Okin turned back around. He understood why Bakura laughed. He must have looked pretty stupid.

"Ryou-san, is there something funny about hermaphrodites and their body parts?" Yuugi looked up and saw Okin up at the board with her hands on her hips, tapping her foot impatiently.

Yuugi could tell Bakura was about to readily state reasons how hermaphrodites and their body parts were so funny. Unfortunately, so did Okin. "Don't answer that question," she interrupted abruptly. "Detention. Now if I may, I have a class to teach." She huffed and turned back to the board.

Yuugi turned in time to see Marik give both him and Bakura a thumb up. He didn't see the three pairs of fuchsia, chocolate-brown, and crimson eyes follow his every movement.

**/ - With Yami - /**

It was just before English class for the sophomores. Yami and the rest of the gang were in their usual seats, all right in the middle of the room.

"Okay, Yams, d'you got da plan up in yer head?"

"Yes."

"But Yami." Anzu sounded worried. "What about your permanent record? A detention in there can never be removed."

"He'll just have to bear it. One detention never hurt anybody," Honda reasoned.

The bell rang.

"Shh," Ryou said, lifting a hand up to his lips. "Sensei's coming."

"Okay, Yami," Malik said, clapping a hand onto Yami's shoulder, "Operation Get-Back-Yuugi's-Forgiveness is go."

"Okay class, today we will be talking about subjective compliments and their roles in sentences."

Yami groaned loudly. On cue, Malik, Jou, and Honda all sniggered. "Why must I learn this…useless…stuff…?" _Oh great, Yami, you really screwed that one up…_ he thought to himself. The plan was to swear. He sighed inwardly and lounged in his chair. He would have to do this the long, hard way.

"You need an education, Motou-san. Now please do not interrupt my lesson again." He turned back to the board.

Yami gathered up all the courage he had. "A-a pharaoh doesn't need an education. I'm the most learned and w-wisest pharaoh in the entire world. I-if I had my guards at my side right now, I-I'd have you're head…cut off."

"Oh, SINGE!" Jou yelled out.

"It's 'burn,' you dolt," Ryou whispered, nudging Jou in the side.

The teacher arched an eyebrow. "You will cut my head off…? Right…"

Yami growled. The teacher sure didn't expect this from him and thought he was joking. Yami was the perfect model student. He needed to take this up a notch.

"Ra be-damned peasant!" Yami roared, standing up.

Everyone's eyes were on him now. Ryou, Malik, Jou, Honda, and Anzu's eyes were wide, making Yami inwardly cringe. This wasn't part of the plan, but he just _had_ to improvise. But Marik, Bakura, and Yuugi's eyes were filled with scorn. The expressions on their faces clearly read out _'wanna-be'_.

"Motou-san!" the teacher yelled. "Language in my classroom. Detention! Now sit down, or it's to the principal's office with you."

Yami sat down with satisfaction. The plan had worked. Oh- the plan. You want an elaboration of it? Well, Ryou initially thought of the plan. Ryou pointed out the fact that Yuugi was pulled towards Marik and Bakura by their bad-streak and rebellious attitudes. So, it was only logical that if Yami acted like them, he would eventually regain Yuugi's friendship and forgiveness. The plan was for Yami to get a detention with Yuugi, then show him how Bakura-and-Marik-y he was. So far, the plan was going on fine.

**/ - With Bakura : Later That Day, Detention - /**

"Ryou-san, Ishtar-san, Motou-san?" Ame said wearily. "And here I was thinking a new week would bring about changes…"

Bakura bared his fangs at Ame in a strained smile. "Well, if we weren't always here, then we wouldn't have the _pleasure_ of seeing you." Bakura gagged inside at that comment. Oh what he would do to get out of detention…

Ame blushed and giggled, giving Bakura the oddest urge to strangle the poor girl. He hated her guts as much as he hated Anzu, but he knew how to flatter the nineteen-year-old teacher's assistant. Ignoring Yuugi and Marik's usual gagging and choking noises, and swallowing his own, he perched himself onto Ame's desk and drew his face to hers until they were barely five inches apart.

Ame turned beet-red. She giggled weakly and leaned back in her seat, trying to put more space between herself and Bakura's face. "Y-you may g-go," she stuttered.

This was Marik's cue. He stepped forward, concealing his gagging, and grinned toothily at Ame. "Are you sure? We're supposed to be in detention," he said 'innocently.'

"It's all right. I'll just mark you guys as present. They'll never know." Ame winked in what she thought was a cute way more at Bakura than at Marik or Yuugi, and shooed them back to the door.

Bakura slid off her desk and whipped hair from his face. "Okay!" he exclaimed cutely. (O-O;; Yeah, by cutely, I mean I'm making him all…childish and Ryou-y sounding) "Thanks, Ame-san!"

Ame batted her lashes. "You can call me Ame-koi…" she murmured.

_Ra-damned girl,_ Bakura thought. _I think I'm going to be sick…_ He again had the strange urge to strangle the assistant. This time, he didn't think he would ignore it…

Yuugi and Marik must have seen the signs.

"Ame-san," Yuugi piped up loudly, "Bakura, and Marik, and I have to help out at my ojii-san's shop. He's _terribly_ old, and weak from his last surgery."

Marik looked down at Yuugi with confusion written all over his face. "Yuugi- your ojii-san's pushing up daisies-"

Yuugi stomped on Marik's foot to shut him up. Bakura chuckled inaudibly at the look on Marik's face.

Ame didn't seem to hear Marik's comment and faced Yuugi sympathetically. "I'm so sorry, Yuugi. Go ahead and help your ojii-san. I'll mark you all as present as I said before."

"Domo arigatou," Yuugi replied, grabbing the back of both Bakura and Marik's jackets and hauling them out of the detention room.

Once they reached the outside hallway, Bakura burst out laughing. "_'He's _terribly _old, and weak from his last surgery,'_" he mimicked.

"Well it wouldn't have sounded so silly if Marik hadn't started explaining his death."

"Heh…heh…" Marik stammered.

Bakura chuckled. "C'mon, let's get out here. I didn't just whore myself up for a desperate teacher's aid to stand out here in the halls." _I should really stop doing that,_ he thought. _She might really begin to think I'm in love with her…_

Marik led the trio down the hall. When they all rounded a corner, Marik bumped into a short, crimson-eyed, tricolor-haired sophomore.

"Watch where you're going, _Pharaoh_," Marik snarled.

Yami glared crimson daggers at Marik. "I think _you're_ the one who bumped into _me_, Marik," he retorted.

"Oh shut _up_, Pharaoh. By the way, what was with the whole outburst at English class?" Bakura asked.

"I know, huh?" Marik said, chuckling. "I'm the Pharaoh! I don't need an education! Off with your head!"

Bakura and Yuugi laughed at the impression while Yami purpled.

While Yami began to mutter colorfully in Egyptian, only to be responded to by Marik, Bakura leaned over to mutter in Yuugi's ear. "You should go behind that fountain or something, so the Pharaoh won't see you."

Yuugi shrugged. "I would, but somehow, he found out. So now I can just stand here and watch Yami…squirm… O-O."

Bakura looked up and sweatdropped. Somehow, the vocal spar between Marik and Yami had turned physical. Yami was in a headlock, and Marik was laughing maniacally.

"You'd better let go of the dear pharaoh. _He_ has a _detention_ to serve." Bakura gave Yami a steely grin.

Marik dropped the tricolor-haired dark and smirkedsmugly, crossing his arms in triumph.

Yami haughtily pulled himself onto his feet and glared at Marik and Bakura. "I'll see you there."

"Oh ho, ho…no." We have…_special permission_ to excuse ourselves."

"For ojii-san," Yuugi stated, closing his eyes and pulling his hand over his heart. The serene expression quickly dissolved when he burst out laughing.

**/ - With Yami - /**

Yami was furious. Marik and Bakura had made a giant fool of him right in front of his hikari. And they had somehow gotten themselves out of detention. Now the plan was completely useless, Yami's permanent record was tarnished, and he had to serve a detention.

Yami refused to show the anger as he brushed past Marik and Bakura. He stopped at Yuugi and stared at him. Yuugi had changed in the last three months, and the dark had never noticed. He wore a baggy, dark, navy blue school sweatshirt and loose regular blue school pants. Yami noted Yuugi didn't wear the Millennium Puzzle, instead hanging around his neck a silver fang, flicked with blots of red and gold, hanging from a shiny, black chain.

"Like what you see?" Marik whispered into Yami's ear.

Yami jumped and realized he had been staring. He looked up and saw Yuugi staring at him with an arched eyebrow. "Um…nice necklace…" Behind him, Yami could hear Marik and Bakura laughing at him.

"Don't you have a detention to serve, Pharaoh?" Yuugi asked lazily.

"Yuugi…can I speak with you for a moment? …Alone?"

Yuugi's eyes studied him up and down for about a minute. His gaze wavered past Yami to Marik and Bakura. Then finally, he nodded. "Hurry it up, we have places to be."

Yami followed Yuugi around a corner and they were all alone in the hallway.

Yuugi leaned against the wall with his arms crossed. "Well? What did you want to say?"

Yami stood in front of him. "Aibou-"

"Don't call me that," Yuugi snapped curtly. "I stopped being your aibou three months ago."

Yami swallowed. His hikari had gotten…scarier. "Yuugi…I'm sorry." He looked up hopefully, expecting Yuugi's forgiveness.

Instead, the shorter light scoffed. "Is that all you have to say?" he inquired, his voice cold. He uncrossed his arms and made a movement to get off the wall and walk away, but Yami held him back.

Yuugi stared up at Yami callously, amethyst eyes hard and forbidding. Yami blushed inwardly. They were in a slightly…suggestive position. Yuugi was still leaned up against the wall, his arms limply to his sides. Yami had both his hands plastered to the wall, on either side of his head, so that their faces were a little less than a foot apart.

"Put your arms down, Pharaoh," Yuugi said, his voice holding frigid with authority.

"Not before you hear me out, Yuugi." Yami stared straight into Yuugi's eyes. Without waiting for Yuugi to accept/reject his words, he spoke. "Yuugi, I am truly sorry for ignoring you. It has been 5 millenniums since I had been free to do whatever I had ever wanted to do. In the spur of the moment, I was so caught up in living this new, modern life, I somehow forgot about you. I kick myself for doing that. How could I have done that, I ask myself now. You gave me life, and I am truly grateful for everything you've done for me when I was still anchored to the Puzzle. You are my hikari, and my aibou. I know you are avoiding me, because it is what I did to you, but I just hope you will forgive me, for if I had to live a life with you ignoring me, it would not be a life at all. Please, Yuugi…forgive me?"

Yuugi's eyes were blank and unreadable.

Yami's mind raced. Would Yuugi forgive him? He had really meant what he said. If Yuugi forgave him, he would never take his aibou for granted every again. _Please, Yuugi,_ Yami prayed. _Please forgive me_.

Golden banged shadowed Yuugi's eyes as he looked down at the ground. This was it. Yuugi was going to forgive him and they would live happily ever after.

Yami stared down at Yuugi's crown of black and red hair. His heart skipped a beat. (Oh Ra! I can't believe I'm writing this mush…/gags/) He had never realized how adorable his tenshi was. Wait… _Adorable_? _His_ tenshi? Sure, Yuugi's looks had always screamed 'kawaii!', but where had those feelings come from? They had never been there before.

_Nuh-uh,_ a little voice in the back of Yami's head reasoned. _They had been there since that duel with Raphael._

Yami couldn't argue.

He looked back down at Yuugi. His aibou looked so cute and innocent…and vulnerable… _One_ kiss wouldn't hurt, would it? His aibou was going to forgive him anyway, wasn't he?

Yami bent his elbows so that he could close the foot-long gap between he and his hikari. He stopped an inch away from Yuugi's face, heart racing to the point of explosion.

Yuugi lifted his face and gasped.

Yami swallowed. Didn't Yuugi want this? (Hell no, you 'tard! Oh Ra…why am I still writing this…?)

"Yami…" Yuugi said softly, filling the inch-long gap so that their noses grazed for a moment.

"Yes, Yuugi?" Yami asked, closing his eyes and swooping in for the prey. (Whoa…Discovery Channel moment…)

…

Yami gasped and snapped his eyes open. He stumbled back from Yuugi and staggered against the opposite wall. Yuugi had _kneed_ him. _Kneed him. _Kneed him…where the sun don't shine.

Yuugi pulled himself up off the wall and straightened up. "Sorry, Pharaoh dear," he said silkily. "But bastards don't get my forgiveness." He pulled the hem of his baggy sweatshirt down and walked back around the corner, out of sight.

Yami leaned against the wall, breathing deeply as the pain slowly began to fade. Yuugi hadn't forgiven him. And he had made an entire ass of himself…

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

Killah: Vwa-la! Third chapter's done!

Yami: YOU MADE MY AIBOU KNEE ME IN THE… /blushes/ Y'know…

Yuugi: Heh… /grin/ I liked this chapter…

Yami: AND YOU'VE CORRUPTED MY AIBOU!

Bakura and Marik: No, that was us.

Killah: I'll let you three talk this out alone. /grins/

**Yami **and Yuugi will not get together. There will be no pairings and no coupling _at all_. Sorry, chaps, but no shounen-ai, just subtle hints (if you can call it that…). This chapter was…hard and weird for me. Sorry if you got all offended, or something. /face blanches/

**3,322 **words. Again with the notebook-y-ness… /sigh/ Longest chapter yet!

**Review**! I'm still looking for genres. If you disagree with what genre I have now, just drop me a review with a suggestion of what you're looking for.


	4. Crushed

**Darkmistressofyaoi  
**Aw! Thanks! I loved it when Yami got kneed, if I may say so myself. /grins fiendishly/ ... Awww! So compassionate, ne? … Here's the next chapter. Thanks for the rating!

**NubianQueen413  
**I'm glad you found it funny. /cheers/ Pharaoh got kneed! I'm happy about that part of the chapter. /grins and nods/ I'm glad you didn't mind. I wasn't sorta freaked out after writing that. X-x But Yuugi was just teasin' and that backstabbing Yami didn't get what he wanted. BURN, YAMI, BUUUUURNN! MUHAHAHAHAHAHA! Uhm…ahem… /cough/ Ignore me… Here's the chapter!

**YamiMisao  
**Yah, when kawaii Yuugi gets angsty, he pwns! A threesome, eh…? That would be sorta cute… If you kick out Marik… /huggles kleptoshipping/ Sorry. -.- I'm obsessed with Yuugi and Bakura together, even if I don't write it. Heh heh…Thanks for reviewing! Here's the chapter, mate!

**Everyone's Anti-Valentine  
**I know! Yuugi pwns, ya? OOC-ness rocks when you make characters kick-ass! Or…kick-Yami (where the sun don't shine!) Here's the chapter! Thanks for reviewing!

**Slave Of Darkness**  
I love him wherever he is… /daydreams of Yuugi/ Erg…back to response… I know. But I really based his response to Yami's apology as what I believed any regular person would respond. I mean, the other half of your soul, and all your bestest buddies in the whole entire world, ignore you for THREE months. I don't think you'd go running into their arms when you have your own, sadistically awesome friends anyway! And when the backstabbing counterpart tries to stick his tongue in your mouth, you knee him where the sun don't shine! Thanks for the review! Here's the chapter!

**DreamCherry66  
**Heh… Believe me, if I really wrote clear shounen-ai/yaoi, then you'd see YuugxBakura and YuugixSeto fics everywhere. But alas, no pairings at all. That reminds me… /goes out scouting for YuugixBakura and YuugixSeto fics/ Heh…

**Kat1132  
**I know. /mutters, "Stupid Yami…"/ NO ONE wants to visit Yami's world… /shudders/ Where everything you see is from Yami's eyes. OMFG! Rats with wings and 2 plus 3 is 6463252… That dim-witted prat… Yeah, it just sticks, huh? You suddenly have the urge to read every YuugixBakura/YuugixSeto fic in the site… /drools/ Oh my Ra, I'm turning into a rabid yaoi fan. /grins/ Yeah, that's how I was pushed to Anzu-bashing. Go ficcies! I know, Kazuki Takahashi should have seen the bashing coming… /shakes head in disappointment/ Not that Kazuki doesn't know anything! I WORSHIP KAZUKI! Muhahahaha…

Warning: random filling in the middle, to fill up space and stuff, strong-ish language, drunken hints of shounen-ai, and…yeah…

**/ - With Yuugi - /**

Yuugi scoffed and shook his head. The Pharaoh no baka had actually tried to…ugh…_kiss_ him. He reminded himself to puke later. He rounded the corner and was waylaid by Marik and Bakura. Had they seen anything?

"Pharaoh's got the hots for you, Yuu-chan," Marik chirped.

Yeah, they saw something…

"Nice aim," Bakura added. "Remind me to steer clear of your knee of doom."

Yuugi laughed. They all walked down the hallway and out the door.

**/ - With Yami - /**

Yami trudged to the detention room and swung the door open.

"Yuugi, I told you that you could go. Your ojii-san needs you!"

Yami looked up. There was a girl, approximately his age, sitting at a desk in front of the classroom. She had waist-long, pure black hair. There was an explosion of light brown dye on the top of her head, starting from the roots, as if someone had just squirted a bottle of dye on her head and left it. On top of that was a smaller explosion of blonde dye. She also had deep emerald green eyes flecked with gold, rimmed by long, thick black lashes.

Yami stepped up to her desk.

"Oh…you're that other Motou, ain't ya? Yumi, is it?"

"Yami," Yami corrected.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Ame's the name. I'm the detention person." Ame looked down at her clipboard. "And you're forty-five minutes late."

"Gomen," Yami said shortly, not looking at her happy, vibrant face. One did not like looking at vibrant, happy people when one felt like hell. Yami felt like hell.

"Naw, it's cool," Ame replied, making a little check on her clipboard. "But you'll have to serve an additional twenty minutes as penalty."

"Hai," Yami said hollowly, not really listening. He sank into a seat at the front of the classroom. He pulled out his history assignment and was about to answer the first question on the bombing of Hiroshima when Ame spoke.

"So, Yumi-"

"Yami," Yami corrected.

"Whatever. Yami, what're you in for?"

"Um…aren't I supposed to sit here in silence?"

"Yeah, but I hate silence. I love talking with the detentionees. Nobody knows, so we're all happy. Say- your brother, Yuugi, the really short, cute one-?"

"Yes? What about him?"

"He's one of the regulars, along with Bakura and Marik. At first, I was like totally scared of them. I mean, they threw knives up into the air when they got bored. But I got to know them every day they got here, and we're acquaintances! But I think Bakura wants to be more than that…" Ame giggled and Yami felt the strange urge to barf.

Yami bit back the urge to yell out the fact he doubted _anyone_ would want to date some desperate ditz like her. Instead, he asked, "Why aren't they here? I thought they had detention, too."

"Yeah, they did, but I let them off. They had to go help Yuugi's ojii-san at the shop. Wait…why are you there?" she inquired shrewdly, squinting at him.

"Erm… Ojii-san prefers them to me. Ojii-san…doesn't like me…"

Ame laughed. It was a high, unpleasant laugh.

"Uh…may I go to the boys' lavatory?" Yami asked.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, sure."

Yami stood up and rushed out of the room. Once he reached the hallway, he leaned against the wall. Man, was that girl unpleasant. But she did give some pretty good information. Like how those three got out of detention. They lied. Yuugi's ojii-san had died two and a half months ago. Now that he thought about it… Yami and all his friends hadn't gone to the funeral. No wonder Yuugi hadn't forgiven him; he had been a total ass…

"Yami!"

"Eh?" Yami turned and saw the whole gang running down the hall to him. "Oh, hey guys. Can't talk now. I've still got to finish my detention."

"No! Jou's found a lead to where Yuugi's whereabouts are," Ryou said. "You can go try to get his forgiveness there."

"You don't understand. I already tried and he-"

"C'mon, Yami!" Anzu pleaded. "With us there, we can give our apologies, too!"

"But-"

"I know, I know, detention. No worries. I can help. Just go to the door, stick your head in, yell some bull about you being sick, make some throwing up noises and yeah, and blast off."

"But Honda-"

"Go on, bud," Honda interrupted, pushing him back towards the door.

Yami dropped his head in defeat. Well, with all of them there to apologize, maybe Yuugi would think about forgiving them. Maybe. So Yami followed Honda's suggestion, and totally grossed Ame out.

"Ergh! Go, Yumi! Just go!"

Yami chuckled once he got out into the hallway again. "So where'd you get your leads, Jou?" he asked.

"Well, dad sometimes, once a week or so, goes to dis bar after work wit his work buddies, an' he said some short kid wit crazy tricolor-haired worked dere. I knew he meant Yuug', so den I asked when da kid worked. He said Mondays, an' Wednesdays, an' Fridays. So I bet Yuug's workin' dere now! Dad said dey go dere exactly when it opens, and he's dere, so once we get dere, we're sure to see Yuug'."

"Well done, Jou!" Yami cheered.

"Why is Yuugi working at a bar?" Malik asked.

Yami shrugged. "When does the bar open?" he asked.

"Four sharp."

"Ah, okay. We have an hour, then."

"We can think of ways to tell Yuugi we're sorry and we want his forgiveness," Anzu suggested.

**/ - With Yuugi - /**

"I know I live here and all, but this is still one BIG-ASS mansion." Marik leaned against the little speakers built into the wall at the side of the gate.

Bakura laughed at Marik's comment. "What do you expect? It's Seto we're talking about. Actually, I don't see what's so hard about his job. I bet I could do it if I tried…"

Yuugi scoffed. "Yeah, sure. Knowing you, you'd manufacture the Duel Discs to stab the loser an additional ten times."

"Don't be stupid," Bakura retorted as Marik howled with laughter.

"Yeah, Yuugi," Marik agreed. "It'll be programmed to stab _twenty_ times, emit a fatal poison, and shoot the dead person's rotting carcass."

Bakura rolled his eyes. "I want the job done _right_. Not by some freakish holographic machine. I might as well attach a locater to the Duel Disc. That way, when the loser loses, I would come in my personal jet and kill them myself!"

"Yeah," Marik mused. "But you'd have to overthrow Seto first."

"I've already thought that part up. Right at this moment, mind you, but thought it up all the same. I would mutilate his guards to the extent of paralyzation, then burst into his office with my good ole' AK 47 and demand his job. Then, with me as CEO of Kaiba Corp, I would rename it Bakura Rocks And Always Will, and make you two my right and left hand men. But of course, computers all blow up in my wake- it's a curse, I tell you- so I'd keep Seto in the basement and order him to make all the technology. And after that, it's world domination time! I would slaughter all the government officials, and beam for the aliens to come-"

"_I'd appreciate not to lean on the speaker button and talk about slaughtering loser duelists and taking over my company/the entire world when Mokuba's right beside me," _came Seto's digitalized voice from the speaker Marik was semi-leaning on.

Marik jumped and looked around wildly. He had been leaning on the speaker button. "Uh…" He grinned as sheepishly as a sadistic yami could and waved at the little holes in the speakers. "Hi Seto! Hi Mokuba!"

Yuugi sweatdropped. "They can't see you from there, you know?"

Bakura, however, was looking over his shoulder in paranoia. "Heh heh…did'ja hear any of that, Setty-Set-chan?"

"_Yes, and don't call me that,"_ Seto replied. _"Exactly how were you going to force me into making computer systems in the basement?"_

Bakura shrugged. "Marik's Millennium Rod?"

_"Uh…Bakura…"_

"Yep, Short Stuff?"

_"Do you REALLY believe in aliens…?"_

"I'm telling you! They're real! Where do you think _jello_ comes from, eh? Mortals? Never in your lifetime! Only the green Martians can gather together the sweet, green ingredients to create the jella-licious tastes of jello…" Bakura licked his lips.

"There's cherry jello too, ya know," Yuugi commented.

"Cherry? What the hell?"

"Nevermind…" O-O

Marik, however, was still waving at the little holes in the speakers.

"_Come on in, guys,"_ Mokuba said cheerfully. _"We got something to show you."_

The gates of the Kaiba mansion opened up, letting the three enter.

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

"Go put your books up in your rooms first," Seto ordered, pointed to the staircase. "I am _not_ going to buy you another set when you lose them here again."

"It's not our fault," Bakura said shrugging. "If you didn't have one hell of a big-ass house, we wouldn't lose our books every so often…"

"Don't swear," Seto scolded. "Mokuba's here."

Yuugi rolled his eyes. "No matter how many times you say that, you know they'll keep swearing."

Seto shrugged. "It's what a good big brother does."

They were interrupted when Marik and Bakura started yelling from the top of the stairs.

"You ass!" Marik sassed. "You nearly tripped me!"

"Well ex-cu-USE me, you no-good bastard! Maybe I wouldn't trip you if you didn't-"

"Ahem…" Seto cleared his throat.

"Oh right…short stuff's still here…right…" Bakura grinned down at Yuugi and the two Kaiba brothers and shoved Marik before scampering through the upstairs hallway.

"AHHHH!" Marik cried as he thudded down the steps. He loudly crashed at the bottom, a heap of crumpled Egyptian. "Aw fuck," he murmured as he untangled himself.

"Language."

"Damn."

"Language."

"Ow?"

"Better."

"Thanks for the compassion," Marik replied sarcastically, stomping back up the stairs. He grabbed his books, which were scattered everywhere on the second level of the house, and followed the path Bakura had taken before pushing Marik down the stairs.

**/ - With Seto - /**

Bakura and Marik dropped back down into the main room. Bakura leaped all the way from the top of the steps to the ground floor while Marik slid down the banister, hopping down on sturdy ground cleanly.

"C'mon short stuff, tall stuff," Marik chirped, using his…nicknames…for Mokuba and Seto. "What was it that you wanted to show us?"

Mokuba blanched at the name.

Yuugi chuckled. "C'mon, Moku-chan. At least he doesn't call you runt, or midget." The short duelist made a face.

"He should be stupid stuff…" Seto grumbled under his breath. He didn't like the _strange_ names Marik and Bakura gave him. He was 'tall stuff' and 'Setty-Set-chan'. How anyone ever put up with them for more than a year, he'd never know. Nevertheless, with them, there was never a dull moment. Ever. In your entire life. Ever.

Mokuba looked up at his elder brother with wide, watery eyes. "Did onii-san just say stu-"

"No! No, I didn't! You like candy, Mokuba? I like candy. Well, no, not really, I hate candy, but- HEY LOOK! CANDY!" Seto mentally slapped himself. _Note to self: swear quietly._

Mokuba grinned and helped himself to some candy, which was ironically placed on a table in the middle of the room.

Seto looked at Marik. "We've installed an extra room for you three." He pointed to a door on the far side of the room.

"How is it different from any other room in this big-ass house?" Bakura asked, walking over to the door and inspecting it. He tapped the knob and glared at it.

"Erhm…" Seto shrugged. "It just is."

"…"

Marik shoved Bakura out of the way and pushed the door open. "Heh heh heh…"

Yuugi watched from Seto's side as the two wandered into the room. He heard their excited shouts.

"Whoa! A Pharaoh dummy!"

"Whoa, look! This knife's longer than any other I've ever seen before!"

"Kill it! MUHAHAHAHAHA!"

Yuugi looked up at Seto. "You've unleashed a horrible, lovable darkness within them…"

"Yeah," Seto said, not looking down as the two yami's yells grew even louder and…more sadistic. "But you've got to love 'em…"

"Tch…never thought I'd hear the day when you'd love a guy…" Yuugi said quietly.

"Yeah…" The words registered in Seto's head. "Wait- NANI?"

Yuugi chuckled and zoomed over into the room.

Seto shook his head and…smiled…?

**/ - With Yuugi - /**

Yuugi sat on the couch idly, contentedly watching Bakura and Marik mutilate, maim and destroy the many Yami dummies in the room, sipping some soda. He checked his watch and cursed. "Shit. Almost late for work."

Bakura shrugged. "Why do you care? Peterman chews your head off anyway."

Yuugi shrugged back. "Need some money for spending. Gotta go."

Marik stopped his maiming of Yami. "We'll come with you. Gives me a good reason to get drunk…"

"Really?" Yuugi arched an eyebrow. "And what's that?"

"Uhm…I was tired of waiting for your shift to end, so I had a couple beers."

"Yeah…that was a good excuse…"

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

"You're late, Motou," Peterman snapped when Yuugi walked into the bar at a quarter after four.

"Aw shut up…" Yuugi muttered under his breath as he walked past the manager. "Crazy American…" He strolled over to the back room and put on his…ergh…_apron_. He sauntered over to a booth filled with burly men and held up his notepad and pen. "Wat'cha want?"

"Uh…five super combos, one no mayo, one no lettuce, one no tomatoes, one extra cheese, one extra mayo and no cheese. Oh- and…ten beers."

Yuugi stuck out his tongue, hiding it behind his notepad as he wrote down the order. "Would you like a muck bucket with that, too…?" he asked under his breath.

"Huh?"

"Nothing. I'll be back with your order…in a few…yeah, whatever…" Yuugi walked away into the kitchen. "Hey, you, chef-guy! Five super combos, one no bird shit, one, no green stuff, one no blood slices, one extra solid spoiled milk, and one extra bird shit and no solidified spoiled milk."

The chef glared at Yuugi. "Haven't I told you to use the real code?" he snapped.

"Yeah."

The chef rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Listen. We're low on chefs today. You're gonna hafta help me prepare the food."

Yuugi sulked. "Neh… Fine. Let me just get the pigs' beers."

The chef rolled his eyes again. "And haven't I told you not to badmouth the customers?"

"Yeah."

Another eye roll.

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

Yuugi dropped all ten beers onto the table. "Anything else?" he asked boredly. Then he turned away before anyone could order and walked to the table occupied by Bakura and Marik. "How about you two?"

"BEER!" they both screamed, making the tricolor-haired worker jump up a few feet.

"SHUT UP!"

"OKAY!"

"STOP YELLING, MOTOU!" Peterman yelled from behind the open bar.

"OKAY!" … O-O So Yuugi went off to get his two friends three beers each (O-O Like Marik said earlier, they have an excuse to get drunk /smile/) and returned to the kitchen.

"Okay, you," the chef said. "Help me here with the patties."

**/ - With Bakura - /**

Marik downed his second beer and started on his third while Bakura had just finished his third. He motioned to the American bartender, Peterman, and yelled out his order of six more beers. (O-O)

While Peterman shuffled around under the counter while Marik tossed his beer bottle at the wall. It shattered and dropped to the ground.

"Idiot…" Bakura sighed.

The door of the bar swung open, filtering sunlight into the tavern. Six shadows blocked out the light in the doorway.

"Dis place looks all dark an' dank," someone muttered. No one in the entire world would ever forget that accent.

"Aw, look on the upside, Jou!" a perky voice piped up. "As long as we're all here, it's fine, because we'll be here to help each other out!" And it was probably impossible to ever forget that annoying bitch's voice.

Peterman zoomed over to their table, plopping a tray of beers onto its surface.

"Oh look, it's the geek squad," Marik stated shortly.

"Hm…" Bakura downed both his beers in a split second, hoping to get himself wasted before he could coherently hear their questions or criticism. Yeah, it worked.

Marik took his time, but his time was really fast, so he finished right after Bakura. (O-O)

Soon, both darks were officially drunk. (Yeah, I'm getting somewhere with this, I'm not just getting them drunk for no reason…or AM I?) They banged on the table and yelled for another round. This attracted some attention.

"Bakura! Marik! What are _you_ two doing here?" came the enraged voice of the Pharaoh.

Bakura swiveled around in his booth to face the gang. "Well, well, well…_Pharaoh_… Never thought I'd see _you_ in a bar, along with the rest of us, _peasants_," he spat out in drunken contempt.

"Well DUUUH," Marik said loudly. "He isn't a Pharaoh no more, Baku-chan!"

Bakura made a badly aimed swipe at the platinum blonde-haired yami, instead banging his fist on the table. "Don't call me that."

"Okay, love," Marik said goofily, smiling toothily at his…_love_.

Bakura rolled his eyes and stood up. "C'mon bakayarou," he growled to Marik. He grabbed his hand and dragged him from the booth. "We wouldn't want to taint the ground on which the Pharaoh walks upon." He bowed woozily, mockingly nonetheless, nearly falling over. (Same Bakura, except speech-slurred and woozy)

Marik jumped up. "But Yuugi's still in the back," he said sadly. (Emotional drunk O-O)

At this, Yami flared. "Where is my aibou? I wish to talk to him."

"Talk to him?" Marik inquired. "Are you sure you don't mean push him against the wall and try to kiss him?" He and Bakura burst out laughing.

Yami's cheeks were tinged in pink as the rest of his gang looked at him. "I-I…"

"It's okay," Anzu said consolingly.

"Yeah, we understand," Honda agreed.

Yami nodded slightly and turned back to the two laughing yamis. "Well? Where is my aibou?"

**A drunken conversation. Anything they say is from drunkenness, thanks to the…many…beers they had. Do not believe a word. /grins/ Carry on, then.**

"I don't think he wants to talk to you," Bakura said haughtily. "After all, he's got _me_."

Marik pouted. "I thought you had me." (Mr. Drunk /glug glug/)

"Ew. No." Bakura made a face. "I love Yuugi. He's so cute." n-n (Keep in mind that he's intoxicated. He doesn't really know what he's saying. And YES, I'm getting somewhere with this.) "I want to huggle him until he dies of air loss!"

Yami purpled, but Bakura took no heed.

"Oooh, me too!" Marik said happily. "Wonder what he's like in the bedroom, eh, Baku-chan?"

Yami's temple throbbed angrily.

Bakura grinned, fangs bared. (I like it when he has fangs. n-n But he ain't no vamp) "You wonder- but I know." n-n

Yami gave an inaudible gasp.

"Ooooh- really?"

The two conversed as if Yami and everyone else weren't there.

"Yeah…it was real nice!" (Now his drunkenness is causing him to hallucinate… O-O)

"How nice?" Marik asked slyly.

"Really nice." n-n

"Oooh…nice…"

"I know…" (Now they're talking like hippies. X-x)

"Maybe we could…do a threesome." n-n (O-O I'm freaking out x.X)

"I like the way you think," Bakura complimented.

Yami growled. "Stop talking about that!"

Marik smiled. "I'm sorry, Pharaoh. We all know _you_ wished to be the first one to fuck little Yuugi."

"Too bad. I win!" Bakura exclaimed cheerfully. (Mr. Hallucination…)

"I do not!" Yami yelled angrily, stomping his foot on the ground. (O-O…?)

"Well you practically looked like you were gonna in the hallway earlier…" Marik said.

"But he's with me," Bakura interrupted disdainfully.

"Hn…" Marik mused. "All this talk about little Yuugi makes me want to fuck him now." He grinned cheekily. (O-O Sorry, chaps. But I really need a reason for the Yami's part…well, you'll see…)

"Good idea, Marik," Bakura agreed. He woozily grabbed Marik by the arm and made movement to walk over to the door that led to the back.

But Yami would obviously take none of this. "You will not speak of my aibou like that!" he bellowed.

**/ - With Yami - /**

The dark Pharaoh got into his stance, holding out his palm at the two yamis before him. He leveled his legs, about a foot apart, as the Eye of Ra glowed upon his forehead, blowing his golden bolts out of the way. "**MIND CRUSH**!" Yami roared, forgetting all his boundaries. The anger flooded through his veins, red blotting his vision, blinding him from rational thought. (Yeah, lame, I know. -.-)

The world stopped. The attack sliced through the air, a lone beam of black and purple flickering energy, spiraling at Bakura and Marik. They did nothing but stand there, dumbfounded and grinning stupidly. This confused the enraged Pharaoh.

The ray of dark energy hit both at the same time and they glowed a blackish-purple aura. A white trickle of light shimmered from the tops of their heads, disappearing into the heavens. (Hah! You would think people obsessed with world domination would go to hell, but they're going to heaven! YAH!) The blackish-purple glow dissipated. The two darks crumpled, Crushed before they even hit the ground. (BAM! I just killed j00 guys off the fic…)

_CRASH_

Yami looked up from the two Crushed bodies. There was Yuugi, standing in a doorway a few yards away. Before him were two fallen trays. Five burgers were scattered at his feet, their insides all over the floor, and spilt sodas were collected in a bubbling puddle, soaking the food. "Marik!" he screamed loudly. "Bakura! Don't you guys die on me, damn it!"

He kicked the food out of his way and ran to the immobile bodies of his comrades. Falling to his knees, he grabbed Marik by one of his golden necklaces and held him up so that their faces were barely inches apart. "Marik! NO! MARIK!" He dropped the platinum blonde-haired dark and moved over to Bakura. He pulled him up by the scruff of his shirt and yelled in his face. "Damn it! Wake up, you ass!"

He dropped his albino friend and hunched over. Yami couldn't see his hikari's face, but he could tell Yuugi was crying by the way his shoulders trembled.

"Yuug'…" Jou whispered, taking a few steps forward. He slowly placed a calming hand on Yuugi's wavering shoulder.

_Flash_

Yuugi turned, quick as light, and grabbed the blonde's hand. A silver blade slashed at the fabric of Jou's school uniform, right at the joint of his elbow.

"Any one of you touch me again," he growled, dried tearstains streaking his porcelain cheeks, "and I'll aim for your wrists." (Oh yeah! He's got the moves!) He dropped Jou's arm and unsteadily stood up, glaring at each one of them in turn.

"Yuugi-" Yami started.

"Shut UP!" Yuugi snarled. "I told you once I didn't need you. And yet you still tried. And now look what you've done. You've killed them. Just leave me the fuck alone, Pharaoh."

He shuffled away from the group of gaping teens, out through the doorway he came in through, and out of sight.

"What have I done?" Yami cried out in anguish. The others moved forward (except for Jou- he moved back) to comfort him, but stopped when they heard yelling.

"You just dropped two trays of food all over the floor, Motou! Go clean it up and make more!"

"Hell no."

"Don't you give me that attitude. I shall deduct from your payroll."

"Do whatever the hell you want. I goddamn QUIT."

"FINE! I never liked you anyway."

There was the sound of a door shutting close. Then there was more yelling, but this time it was muffled.

"Seto…SETO, PICK UP YOUR RA-DAMNED PHONE! Ugh- finally. Listen, I need you to-"

Then Yuugi's yelling died down. There was only the deadly silence. Even the burly men in their booth were silent. Only deadly silence.

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

Killah: I know this is supposed to be drama-y and angsty, but I wasn't feeling very dark, so I put yelling and kleptomaniac-ness in the middle, like in front of the Kaiba mansion, IN the Kaiba mansion, and at the beginning of Yuugi's shift. And the word big-ass just stuck to me…

Marik: BIG-ASS MANSION! MUHAHAHAHAHA!

Yami: Hey- you're supposed to be Mind Crushed!

Yuugi: … /wails and starts crying/ YOU MIND CRUSHED MY BESTEST BUDDIES IN THE WHOLE ENTIRE WORLD, YOU ASS!

Yami: Aibou…?

Yuugi: GET AWAY FROM ME! ARRGHHH!

Bakura: HAHAHA! Stupid Pharaoh. You're hikari hates you!

Yami: You're supposed to be Crushed, too. /is put out/

Yuugi: . /whacks him/

Yami: I didn't WANT to. Stupid Killah made me!

Killah: Sure, blame the author… O-O

**Yes**, Marik and Bakura are truly Crushed. They didn't dodge it or anything. X-X

**Why **Marik and Bakura are housing with Seto and Mokuba will be explained in the epilogue. I think the epilogue is the chapter after the one after this. Did that make sense? O-O

**I** see Mind Crush not as a flash and then the mind is crushed. I see it as like…a black and purple electrical attack that hits you, and then you're crushed. So…yeah.

**Yeah**, I made Yami over, over, over, overreact and Mind Crush them over their drunken conversation. T-T Sorry, Baku-chan! Sorry Mariku! These are the character deaths I mentioned in the summary (summary now changed to take out CHARACTER DEATHS LATER ON). But do they really count as deaths? O-o They were mind crushed, not murdered… Let me think about this for a while… /ponders for a year and three months/

**4,006 **words! My longest EVER! Wh00t wh00t! It would have been longer if I hadn't stopped…

**REVIEW**! MUHAHAHAHAHA! Don't make me go all psycho on you. -.-


	5. Ruined Hollywood Moment

**Silver Goddess1  
**Aw- thanks for the review! Here's the next chapter!

**YamiMisao  
**Hopefully not. I'm already having ideas for their resurrection…though I shouldn't reveal them to the public. n-n Hopefully, I'll get some sort of scene where Yami gets what's coming to him…/cough/ Hint: SLOW AND VERY PAINFUL DEEEAAATTTHHHH /cough/ But no literal death because then I'd have no obsessive person trying to get Yuugi back… Hn… Okay! Here is the chapter.

**Darkmistressofyaoi  
**Neither can I. /sobs with you/ I'm a horrible MONSTER, I agree! I shall bring them back…if I get enough threats for my liking. P In the sequel, maybe… /ponders up ideas/ OMG! Grood…that is such an awesome word! Tee hee… Thanks for the review and the rating, again! Here's the chappie!

**Hikari Skysong  
**I know. I'd punch myself if I…didn't like punching myself. O-O Maybe they'll come back…_maybe_. Actually…I want them to come back. But I killed them. X-x Omfg…I KILLED them. O-----o ROTFLMAO! You want Yuugi to turn into a bloodthirsty killer? . /thinks/ Hn…that's not a bad idea. n-n Naw- he ain't going to kill 'em---or WILL he? No, he's not. :P He'll do something _else_ though… /mysterious look/

**Everyone's Anti-Valentine  
**I'm glad I updated too… AND THERE'S NO ANNOYING SCROLLBAR AT THE SIDE! MUHAHAHA! I don't like those horizontal scrollbars… I've killed them… No- Yami's did! n-n So now I must eliminate him… /pulls out Baku-chan's AK 47/ I know! Poor little Yuugi! . /huggles his brains out/ O-O Here's the next chapter! Thanks for the review.

**DreamCherry66  
**Bakura: Great…she's made people start calling me Baku-Bkau-chan…  
Yes, I must convert you all! Kleptoshipping shall be the new puzzleshipping! MUHAHAHA! No. /pouts/ I want to be the one going all psycho everywhere. /pouts…more (o-o)/ Dum dum DUH-DUH! Not white out! Anything but white out! …Except bird droppings… O-O

**NubianQueen413  
**I know! Who wants to join me in unmercifully maiming Yami? . /pretends that it was all Yami's fault and that I had nothing to do with it, even though I was writing it all/ I know. X-X **T**he **U**nmerciful **M**aimers **o**f **Y**ami **C**lub shall never ever, ever capitalize pharaoh when referring to Yami ever again. n-n But I might forget… x-X Here yah go- thanks for the review!

**Slave of Darkness**  
Sorry, my friend- but they ARE dead. Maybe not gone FOREVER /already has ideas for sequel(s), but they are gone until I have the sudden urge to stop my Yuugi-torture and give him some happiness. n-n I know. Wish to join TUMoYC? . /grins/ Yeah, I laugh at morbid and sad things, too. Not that the Mind Crushing was sad, though…I didn't put much detail. X-x Thanks. The angst was pretty much just at the end… o-o Here's the next installment!

Warning: OOC scenes dealing with the characters' feelings (/chokes and dies and resurrects and gags and dies again/), and strong-ish language

I'm almost finished with the story. Just one or two chapters left, not including this one. It will end sort of abruptly, which is why I'm going to make a sequel. (Fwee!) I already have half of the first chapter of the sequel typed up. O-O Before I even finished this story…strange… Anywhais- because I loved all your reviews, and I equally love Bakura and Marik, they are going to come back in the sequel! I don't know HOW, exactly, but I'll think of something…hopefully… But in this story, they are gone for good! MUHAHAHAHA! As gone for good as one or two chapters can get…

**/ - With Yuugi - /**

Yuugi ended the phone call and flipped the cell phone he had gotten from Seto close. Stuffing it into his pocket, he waited for Seto to come pick him up.

As he lingered, his thoughts wavered back to what happened in the bar. Yami had Mind Crushed his best friends. He would have never admitted it, but without them, he had no one. Sure, there were Mokuba and Seto, but Mokuba was too young for him to swear freely around, and Seto was always at work, at school, or doing something with Mokuba. Despite popular belief (popular belief meaning the belief of Marik, Bakura, Mokuba, and Seto), he cared for them both, and couldn't bear to interrupt their brotherly bonding time.

So whom did Yuugi have, then? No one. And all because of his stupid Yami. Everything was Yami's fault. He could have kept his old friends, Jou, Honda, Anzu, Malik, and Ryou, but Yami had to steal them, and Yuugi was left, lonely and cold. He could have kept his new friends, Bakura and Marik, but Yami had to Mind Crush them.

What was it with Yami? Did he want to ruin Yuugi's life? Did he want to make the short teen's life a living hell? He probably did. That was probably why he did all those things. And he wanted to exacerbate the situation by toying with Yuugi's feelings. Yuugi was no fool. Not anymore, anyway.

And with the new knowledge of this, the tricolor-haired light knew there was only one thing to do. Leave. After all, if he left, unknown to the dark, he could make his own friends, with no risk of them being stolen, Mind Crushed, or possibly killed.

But how would he break it to the people who cared- oh who was he kidding? No one but Seto and Mokuba cared. They would understand.

Yuugi was snapped from his thoughts as a sleek, black limousine crunched over gravel. The shadowed window rolled down.

Seto's head protruded from the open window. "Yuugi! What's wrong?" He sounded concerned. Scooting over, he opened the door. Yuugi climbed in, making sure to discretely wipe off the dried tearstains from his cheeks with his sleeve. Shutting the door, he clicked on his seatbelt. (Can you really click on a seatbelt? What's the phrase…?)

"Well?" Seto asked, looking at Yuugi with apprehension. "What happened?"

Yuugi looked down. "Yami. Yami Mind Crushed Bakura and Marik. (OMFG! The beginning of every word in that sentence except 'and' was capitalized!) They're gone, Seto."

Seto said nothing. The news hit him hard, it seemed. After all, the three were close- or as close as one could get to Seto Kaiba. Not up to Mokuba's standards, but damn near it. "Yuugi…" Seto's voice cracked. "They're close to you, I know. So how do you feel about this?"

Yuugi looked up at Seto in amazement. "You want to hear my _feelings_?" he asked incredulously.

Seto sighed and sat back in his seat, expelling a bark of laughter that didn't suit him. "Yeah, I'm surprising myself here, too. The pompous, arrogant, cold-hearted ass, Seto Kaiba, wants to hear your feelings. So what are you feeling?"

Yuugi thought. What was he feeling? Was he even going to answer the question? He wouldn't want to be deemed as weak… Nah. This was Seto. Besides, the CEO started up the feelings fest, so he'd blame him for any weakness shown. "Well…I'm sort of…pissed at Yami. I mean…he stole my first group of friends, and killed the second pair… I just want to fucking…" Yuugi made a pantomime of ripping something (Yami's head) off from something else (Yami's body) in the air. "Blast his head off, or something…" He sighed.

Seto nodded. "So what are you going to do?" he asked.

"I'm going to leave." (Yep- repeating the age-long classic!)

"Nani? Come again?"

"I'm going to leave Domino. There's nothing here for me."

"What about Mokuba and I-"

"I know I have you two, but other than that, what do I have?" He wanted an answer from Seto.

Seto thought. Yuugi could tell nothing was popping up in his learned brain of his. "I don't know…"

"Exactly. It's not that I don't want to stay here, with you guys and all, but I just don't want to be anywhere _close to_ Yami. Maybe if I go away, to some separate _continent_ or something, he won't try to come after me and kill my new set of friends- if I make any."

"But…"

"Seto, believe me- I really have to go."

"You can stay at my house. I'll get security to guard me and Mokuba from Yami in case he has the sudden urge to Mind Crush US."

"Seto, I really need to do this. I believe as long as I'm in Domino, I'll never forget everything that Yami's has done to me. Please, Seto. If you really are my friend, you'll let me go." _And even if you refuse, I'll leave anyway… _(O-O Good thinking, Yuug')

Seto's eyes were unreadable. Finally, he gave out a breath of air and said, "Yuugi, if you really need to do this, I'm behind you one hundred percent."

Yuugi smiled a genuine smile. "Thanks, Seto. I'm finally going to leave this hellhole and do it all by myself."

"No, no, no," Seto interrupted. "If I'm going to let you go gallivanting-" Yuugi snickered at the word. "-off to another continent, I'm going to help you."

"Oh really? How?"

"I'm going to give you money."

"Oh no, Seto, really. It's fine. I've got 50,000 yen around here somewhere…in my room, or something…"

Seto gave another bark of laughter that didn't suit him. "50,000 yen? That's only about 410 dollars in America."

"Who said I'm going to America?"

"Me. Now I'm going to give you some money, book a flight to California- I hear it's a nice state- and you're going to take it all."

Yuugi laughed at the commanding tone of his voice. "Fine, Seto. Thank you."

"It's no problem Yuugi. Anything to make you happy, and make baka no Yami suffer, is my pleasure."

Gravel crunched as the limo rolled into the Kaiba estate. At the front door, Yuugi and Seto stepped out of the limousine and entered the mansion.

"I'll go call the airport and buy your voucher to California. You go pack."

"Okay. I'll see you in half an hour, or something, then." Yuugi stepped out again onto the driveway in front of the entrance. (o-o Why did he even come out if he was just going to go back home and pack?)

The limo driver rolled down the window and called out, "Would you be needing a ride, Motou-sama?"

Yuugi shook his head. "Nah- I'll walk." (Pointless, yeah, whatever… /sigh/)

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The door had been repaired. But that was obviously essential for the house, seeing that if it hadn't been, Yami could have had his throat slit in the middle of the night by some burglar. Not that Yuugi minded, anyway…

The said duelist slipped into the house and shut the door behind him again. All the lights were out, and the house echoed with a deafening silence; no one was home. Perfect for the little light who did not wish to be discovered.

Yuugi bounced up the steps and into his room, shutting the door and bolting it close. Shuffling around the room, he hauled out a traveling suitcase from under the bed and jumbled through the drawers, pulling out any essential clothes he would need. He moved over to the upstairs bathroom and drew out whatever restroom necessities he would need and stuffed them into his case, too.

On his way back to the staircase, Yami's room caught his shrewd eyes. The door was ajar, expelling a little excerpt of the inside. The mystery of his darkness' room entranced the light, drawing him to the enclosure. Yuugi pushed the door open and was greeted by bright, vibrant colors that once used to be of his liking.

He stepped into the room. Vivacious shades of color were wildly splashed onto the walls, coating each with a joy that only Yuugi could no longer feel. On his darkness' desk were a few unused notebooks and pens, along with a few schoolbooks. But one glittering, golden, pyramid caught his eye. Even in the darkness of the room, seeing that the lights were still off, the Sennen Puzzle sparkled in all its Egyptian glory. Yuugi scowled at it. This _thing_ had been the cause of all his troubles. He would not have had as many friends as he had HAD, but at least Anzu would have been there… There would be no need to take it with him. Besides, Yami was the oh-so-great-and-almighty _pharaoh_. He was the true keeper of the Puzzle anyway.

Beside the glittering artifact sat Yuu- Yami's deck. Yuugi didn't duel anymore. Besides- Yami was the true Yuugiou, renowned King of Games. Yuugi glared at the deck in distaste. But a trickle of guilt seeped into his bloodstream. It wasn't the cards' fault that Yami was such a baka.

Yuugi picked up the deck. A surge of emotions blasted into his palm. Trust. Towards him. Loyalty. Towards Yami.

"Tch…" Yuugi huffed. He was about to place the deck back onto the desk when another blast of emotion attacked his hand. The trust was stronger than the loyalty. Yuugi pulled the deck up to has face. The loyalty and the trust mingled together, equal again.

"Baka cards won't make up their mind…" Yuugi placed the deck back onto the surface of the desk, the cards' emotions fading from Yuugi's knowledge.

Frowning, Yuugi walked back to the doorway. Something in his heart made him turn back to the desk. He couldn't leave the Heart of the Cards to Baka no Pharaoh. He stared down at the deck. The cards were loyal to both sides of his soul. They would not leave Yami, but they too wanted the hikari.

Shaking his head, Yuugi picked up the Sennen Puzzle, jolting as its cold surface glowed warmth that he hadn't felt in months. With a meticulous hand, he traced a vertical line over the top of the deck. It split in half and grew back into its original size.

With his hand hovering over each stack of cards, Yuugi felt for his loyal deck. The first one rejected him, giving him an invisible bolt of electricity. This was Yami's. The second embraced his presence. This one was his.

Picking it up, his placed it into his pocket. He ignored the fact that the stack of cards felt considerably lighter, seeing that half its Heart had just been separated from its counter. Like Yuugi and Yami.

Sighing, Yuugi bounded back downstairs and into the kitchen. He walked over to a potted plant and lifted it up by its long, luscious, green leaves. He grabbed a couple bills (yen) taped to the bottom of the pot and stuffed them into his pocket, too. He stepped out the backdoor and into the afternoon sun.

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"Yuuuuuuuugi," Mokuba whined. "Do you _really_ have to go?"

"Sorry, kiddo," Yuugi said, awkwardly patting the younger Kaiba on the head, sweatdropping slightly at the position they were in, Mokuba latched onto his leg, "but I've got to."

"But I don't waaaaant you to," he countered.

Seto shook his head and easily pulled his younger, hyperventilating brother off the tricolor-haired duelist.

Yuugi gave him a silent 'thank you' and slid into the limousine. He shut the door and rolled down the window so that he could stick his head out. "Thank you for understanding, guys. I just really have to go."

Mokuba held back a sniffle. "Bye, Yuugi," he said somberly. "Make sure to visit, eat well, don't turn into a bum and live in a cardboard box, and call often." (O-O)

"Good-bye, Seto, Mokuba. I'll keep in touch."

"Make sure that you do," Seto said commandingly.

Yuugi smiled. "Thank you for everything, Seto. The money, the plane tickets, the cell phone, everything."

"It's not a problem," Mokuba spoke for Seto. "As long as you don't die or anything, it won't be for a waste."

Yuugi laughed. "Bye. I'll see you in…I don't know when, but… Good-bye."

"Bye," both Seto and Mokuba said simultaneously. Seto walked up to the driver's window and spoke through the glass. "To Domino Airport."

"Yes, sir, Kaiba-sama."

The limousine rolled out of the Kaiba estate. As it neared the gate, Yuugi stuck his upper body out of the window. "Good-bye!" he yelled, waving madly.

"Good-bye…! King of Games…" Seto murmured the last part to himself as Mokuba waved energetically to the back of the receding limo.

**/ - With Ryou; after the Mind Crush - /**

"MIND CRUSH!" Yami roared.

Ryou gasped, taking a step back as the simmering beam of Shadows spiraled at the two yamis. His arm brushed against Malik's, and he could feel the Egyptian tremble.

"Yami," Ryou whispered, referring to his rather than Yuugi's.

The shaft of blackish-purple light capable of mind annihilation exploded once it made contact with Bakura and Marik. Ryou screamed out in anguish, dropping to his knees. He could feel Malik beside him, still steady of his feet, but writhing in pain.

(Ryou: OKAY! Enough about Malik! This is MY POV, okay?

Killah: … -.- You want me to explain your internal torture…?

Ryou: YES! Wait…oh my. O-O --- IT IS SO FRICKIN' KAWAII WHEN HE SAYS THAT WITH HIS ACCENT! ---

Killah: Fine…your funeral…)

Ryou screamed out in anguish, dropping to his knees and holding his head with both hands. The pain was unimaginable. There was a searing throbbing sensation in his mind, numbing everything. Suddenly, sadistic crimson eyes burnt into his closed eyelids and something huge in his heart snapped. He let out another scream of agony and fell down onto his side, still holding his head. Black blotted the vision of the blood-colored eyes until the British teen (P) was blinded by a black abyss. His heart twanged again, causing him to wince painfully. _POP_ There was a loud pop in Ryou's ears. His stomach lifted. He heart twanged. His stomach lifted. (I should stop right here…)

Ryou groaned excruciatingly. He felt as if something was being sucked out from his gut. The crimson-pupiled eyes flashed once more before all the pain stopped. It was completely silent.

Ryou opened his eyes cautiously. He was in his soul room, a room he hadn't been in for three months. It was exactly like how it was that last time he came. Four white walls, with posters of his favorite Duel Monster, the Change of Heart, and Egypt, plastered everywhere. Egypt played a part in his life because it was basically all he could think about when he thought of his father, the only living relative he knew about, seeing that he was an archaeologist.

There wasn't anything else, really. He stared into a corner of the room, shuddering at it. Blood was splattered everywhere. The color of the wall there was a tainted gray. No, his darkness had not beaten him. This corner was a reminder of his old self. (Remember in the second chapter, I made something weird up about Ryou being a dark teen? _"He had wallowed in self-pity over the death of his mother and sister while brooding over his father's neglect."_) He had witnessed his mother and Amane's (It's Amane, right? -.-) deaths. The years passed, but the memory had not dissipated.

Sighing, Ryou looked away from the corner and took to the problem at hand. Why was he suddenly in his soul room?

Maybe Bakura had something to do with it. Ryou walked over to the door of his soul room and pushed it open. He cautiously shuffled out into the corridor and gasped.

The wall opposite to the entrance of his soul room was bare. Empty. Blank. Clear. There was no door. Bakura's door wasn't there.

Ryou panicked. What had happened?

Of course! The Mind Crush. (OMFG! All words are capitalized. n-n Yay!) It all made sense. Ryou lightly praised himself for figuring out what happened. Then the actual seriousness of the situation hit him with its dead weight. Bakura was gone- Crushed.

"No," Ryou whispered. (Aw! n-n He cares!) "Bakura!" he yelled, running at the vacant wall. He banged on the stone, not caring as he bruised his fists on the coarse rock. "BAKURA! Yami! Yami!" (O-O)

As Ryou yelled and hammered on the wall, the corridor slowly began to dissipate. Black swallowed the granite-colored stone pixel by pixel, and the corridor spiraled into oblivion.

"Ryou- Ryou!" Malik whispered quietly, prodding the British albino in the back.

Ryou groggily opened his eyes, flinching as he felt a stinging sensation slowly subside from the back of his head. "Malik?" he called, sitting up from his position on the filthy ground of the bar.

"D-did…_it_…happen to you…too?"

Ryou accepted the hand Malik was giving him and pulled himself up. "Yes…" he responded, looking down in grief. "It's gone… HE'S gone…" Looking up, the mahogany-eyed albino spied the rest of the gang.

Yami was immobile on his knees, head down in shame. The rest of the gang was huddled around him, Jou with a rip in his sleeve.

Ryou dusted himself off and turned to Malik. "C'mon," he said. "Yami looks like he's down in the dumps."

"He should be," Malik seethed. "He just Mind Crushed our yamis and made Yuugi run away from him again."

"It's what friends do, Malik." Placing a comforting expression on his face, he turned back to Yami and walked to the group of huddled teens.

Malik followed- although it seemed rather reluctant- and they all tried to comfort the crying (O-O) darkness, pretending as if nothing had happened.

"I-I've got to go talk to him…to say I'm sorry…" Yami mumbled. He stood up, wobbling slightly, and left the bar, leaving the rest of them blinking all alone.

"Uh…wait up, Yams'!" Jou yelled, running after the tricolor-haired darkness. Honda, Anzu, and Malik followed.

Ryou spared one last glance at his own darkness, lying on the ground unconscious, before following the three out the door.

**/ - With Yami - /**

They all hopped back into Honda convertible and sped off.

"Yami," Anzu finally said. "Do you know where Yuugi is?"

"Of course I…don't…"

"Well…we ovaheard Yuug' yellin' at moneybags when he ran out…" Jou contributed.

"That's it, Jou," Yami said. "He went to Kaiba's!"

"Why would he go to Kaiba's house?" Ryou mused aloud.

Shrugging, Honda hit the accelerator and caught everyone by surprise.

"Honda, you maniac!" Malik yelled. "You're going to kill us all!"

"Slow down!" Anzu shouted over the sound of wind.

Yami, however, was ignoring everyone and everything. He was going to get to his aibou no matter what. (Gee…he just keeps trying, ne? Well he can't just sit there- then there's no crazed, obsessing yami going after Yuugi! YAY!)

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Honda parked at the curb of the Kaiba estate. "How do we get in? The gate's closed."

Yami and the rest of them pondered, while Ryou walked around the tall gate, examining it. Yami looked up at Ryou questioningly. "What are you doing?--- wah!"

Ryou leaped against a speaker pad at the little pillar of bricks at the edge of the gate and onto the spikes of the top of the gate. He stood stiff on the spike, one foot slightly on the other, until he hopped right off, landing on his feet like a skilled feline. He stared over at the group, through the iron bars, with an innocent look on his face.

_Yami, Jou, Honda, Anzu: O-----------O Ryou-kun…?_

_Malik: n-----------n Yay Ryou-kun!_

Ryou shrugged. Yami suspected that Ryou had learned it from _his_…yami…that he…killed…

Malik took the same path the white-haired hikari took, while Honda and Jou simply climbed the fence. Yami was unable to jump the gate, seeing that his height was less that ordinary for a male of his age (5000 o-o), and Anzu…couldn't jump it with a skirt on.

Yami shrugged at Anzu and used his Shadow powers to transfer the two over the gate.

"Why didn't you think of that earlier?" Honda complained. He was just cross because Jou had fallen on him.

Yami shrugged again and brushed past the razor-headed brunette. (XP) He walked up the gravel path of the property, turning back and motioning for everyone else to follow.

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

_Ding DONG_

It was a few minutes before a butler opened the door. "Koban wa," he greeted.

"We'd like to speak to Seto Kaiba," Yami said in his usual haughty air.

The butler looked him up and down. "I will be with you in a moment," he finally said, shutting the door in their faces.

"Uhm…" T.-U Yami and the gang waited until the door slammed open again. Seto Kaiba stood in the doorway, with Mokuba beside him.

"Kaiba, we need to---" Yami stumbled back, holding his cheek while his friends glared at Seto.

"What'd'ja hit Yams' for, moneybags?" Jou asked angrily, getting all up in Seto's face.

"Jou," Yami said warningly, "stop. I will do this on my own." Yami rubbed his cheek for another quick moment before walking back up to the doorway. "What was that for, Kaiba?" he asked in a calm matter.

"Homicidal bastard!" Seto snarled. "How dare you come _here_, to _my_ house, after you did _that_ to Yuugi- and _them_."

"Why would you care?" Ryou asked, more curious than madly crazed at the CEO's outrageous behavior.

"… Just leave me alone. Never step foot on my property ever again, or I swear I will…" The brunette looked down at Mokuba cautiously. "Just leave."

"But I want to make up with my aibou-"

"Well you can't! Don't you understand, Yami?" Mokuba asked. His voice was calm, but Yami could tell anger laced his words, promising the same thing as Seto's threat. "He never wants to see you again! After what you did! I'm surprised Seto-nii hasn't already set security on you."

"Yeah!" Seto said furiously. "Because of you, Yuugi is going to board the 174 plane to California at four o'clock. He's leaving because you were- and are- a huge ASS."

"HE'S GOING TO CALIFORNIA?" everyone yelled simultaneously.

"Onii-san…" Mokuba said. "You weren't supposed to tell them."

"Oh shit! I forgot!" Seto yelled. But Yami and the gang were already on the other side of the gate, packed into the convertible. The last words they heard were from Mokuba's mouth…

"Onii-san…did you swear?"

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"Drive faster, Honda!" Yami yelled over the rushing of wind. "It's two quarters to four o'clock!"

"Do you want me to get a ticket?" Honda hollered back.

"I don't care! Hit it, Honda! Put the pedal to the metal!"

Jou, Anzu, Ryou, and Malik rolled their eyes at the bickering—and Yami's American movie quoting.

"Faster, Honda! HURRY UP, YOU IMBECILE, OR I WILL SEND YOUR SOUL TO THE SHADOW REALM!"

"Shut up, Yami!" Honda screamed back.

"Why don't you?"

"Guys!" Anzu yelled, interrupting their argument. "We're here!"

**/ - With Yuugi - /**

Flight 174 is boarding in twenty minutes.

Yuugi's head snapped up. _That's my flight,_ he thought to himself. Grasping the handle of his traveling case, he stood up from his seat on a bench beside a family of loud, crying, and yelling children. He looked around for a few minutes and spotted the escalator that led upstairs to his gate.

He stepped onto the first, flat step with precaution. (Those things are damn scary, man… My poor shoelace… /sigh/) About halfway up the ascending contraption, the huge doors of the airport slammed open, shattering the surface of the see-through glass a bit.

Yuugi turned at the sound of the noise. There, right in the middle of the airport, was the tricolor-haired, crimson-eyed, leather-infatuated, darkness who ruined his life, his yami. (This is one really short POV…)

**/ - Back to da Yammers' - /**

His light hadn't turned from his spot on the large, moving stairs. "Yuugi! Yuugi!" Yami yelled.

People's heads swiveled to turn their attention on him. He understood. Who wouldn't stare at a weirdo yelling out "Game! Game!"?

Growling, not wanting to be an item of staring, Yami swished his arm, and everyone in the airport except for himself, his friends, and his hikari froze. (He may not be able to do that anywhere else, but he can do it here. XP)

"Yuugi!" he yelled again.

This time, Yuugi turned, gasping at the state the airport was in and that the escalator wasn't moving. "Yami!" he yelled. Yami couldn't understand what feeling was behind his words. Sadness? Relief? Anger? Ecstasy?

His little light bounced down the escalator, dodging out of frozen people's ways, and onto the ground of the first floor.

Yami beamed widely. As Yuugi ran towards him, he almost felt like holding his arms out for a hug. But that was stupid, he told himself. That only happened in Hollywood movies. (He's addicted to American chick flicks. O-O Shhh!) But he couldn't help it. He held out his arms right when Yuugi was a foot or two away from him.

One second, Yami was expecting a hug, the next…

_CRUNCH!_

…Yami had a broken nose… _Oh…I guess it was anger when he yelled…_ he thought to himself as he fell back, only to be caught by Jou and Honda.

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Killah: WH00T!

Yami: . /sigh/ First I get decked out by Kaiba, then my own aibou gives me a bloody nose. Do you hate me, or something?

Marik: Uh…haven't you been listening to ANYTHING she's been saying lately…?

**Umm**… I don't really have any news to tell you… /thinks/ Oh! I know… It's not one or two chapters left- it's two or three. Yeah…okay…bye…

**4,247 **words! No notebook-y-ness AT ALL! Yay! I would have been longer, but I…got lazy. XP

**Now **for my favorite part! REVIEW! MUHAHAHAHA! n-n


	6. Memoir: Mokuba's Sadists

**Chaos Guardian Sethros  
**Don't worry! They'll come back! I just need to figure out how to get them back from their Mind Crushed state… Two chapters (including this one) left! I'm excited. n-n

**Darkmistressofyaoi**  
XP Pharaoh-baka must burn, ne? And don't worry, our(sorry, but you and everyone has got to share X3) bishies will totally be back! . /blanches at the fist/ Yikes. X-x Thanks for the review and the rating! Here's the chapper-ma-lappers!

…  
Yes, very funny! I mean…I think all violence that isn't directed towards me and the people (and bishies!) I lubb is funny! Go Yuugi-kun! You punch his lights out! . /cheers/ Here's the next chapter! Thanks for reviewing!

**NubianQueen413**  
I love reading your reviews. XP I was wondering if I should break his nose, but I decided against it. X-x Oooh- someone clapped! YAY! I've converted you to Yami Hatism! No need to thank me. /bows/ O-O I am strange…/cough/ Yeah, Seto messed up, but he made it up to Yuugi by punching da Yammers. Yay Seto-kun! Here's the next chapter! Thanks for reviewing!

**Emma**  
I'm not done yet. I know, I know, you want me to get off the stage (what stage? O-O) and die and never come back, but…y'know, what can I do? XP But thanks for the enthusiasm!

**DreamCherry66  
**Ooooh- another long review! Yay! Ryou stabbing Yami, eh…? Well the stab-ation-goodness is…good! Malik going psycho (no matter how psycho he already is! X3 MALIK: …) would be so cool… /visions appear in head, where there's lots of blood because Ryou is spreading his stabby-goodness, and Yami crying because Malik is screaming and throwing rare china at him (why is there rare china in a bar?)/ Well, that could have been a good idea, but (although I never mentioned it -.-) Bakura and Marik had slowly drifted away from their hikaris, and are no longer granted entrance into their lights' soul rooms, and cannot use their links. Poor them. X-x

**Slave Of Darkness**  
/gulp/ D-dart b-b-board? Gosh darn it. XP They'd probably be poison-tipped, and as pointy as…something really pointy. Thanks! I was sorta scared at the long-ness of the paragraphs here in Word… /shies away/ It's like BAM! Torture! n-n I usually don't write a person-centered angst, or anything. Just vague hints, and yeah… You could have replaced Ryou with Malik and it would be Malik angst! YAY! Long reviews are pwnin', so yeah!

Warnings: Uhh…let me think…HORRIBLE, MUSHY, TOO-FAR-FETCHED-TO-EVER-COME-OUT-OF-A-NORMAL-PERSON'S-MOUTH FEELINGS! MUHAHAHA! I'm done. n-n

**/ - With The Stupid Idiot I Like to Torture - /**

Jou and Honda tried to pull him back onto his feet, but he brushed them off with difficulty, crimson blotting his face. He pulled himself back up on his own and wobbled over to his hikari. "Why, Yuugi?" he asked wearily, wiping all the blood from his face so that he was presentable.

Yuugi glared at him. "You know why, pharaoh," he growled. "You deserved that punch as much as you deserve to die miserably in a rotting death!"

Yami cringed invisibly. "Not that. Why…are you leaving?"

Yuugi laughed darkly. "Why am I leaving? Are you that dense that you don't even know?" He didn't wait for an answer and continued on. "Of course you are," he stated airily. "How stupid of me to ask that… Anyway, even you should still know that."

Yami took this into consideration. "I-I do… But aibou-" Yuugi growled again. "-they were speaking of you in the most appalling way! Th-they said that…they…they…said that they….that you… That you…and that thief…together… And he said you…"

"Spit it out already, bakayarou!" Yuugi spat, impatient with Yami's stuttering.

"Hesaidthatyouandhimslepttogether," Yami said quickly, sputtering the words in an almost incoherent way.

But Yuugi heard. And, to his confusion, he laughed. "Only you would believe that," he said in an almost jolly way. "You're a hoot. And an idiot. He was drunk. Did you know that?"

"…Drunk?"

"Yes." His voice was hard and unemotional again. "You know, like when you got intoxicated the night you got your own body? And all of you-" He directed this to Jou, Honda, and Anzu, Ryou, and Malik. "-left the club we were at to escort him home? And left me there, at our booth, with those drunk, disgusting men? And left me to walk home, alone, at eleven o'clock, through the 'bad part of town'? And left me to get _mugged_ by some stupid lurking gang? And left me there, nearly bleeding to death?" He gave a frigid bark of laughter. "And when I stumbled into the house, you punched me, because you thought I was some sort of burglar." He didn't ask this, like he had his prior sentences, he stated it in an almost matter-of-fact way.

Yami gasped, causing his shorter, mirror image to emit another acidic chuckle. "Didn't know that, did you, pharaoh? Don't remember that night, do you?"

Yami only shook his head, unable to say that he had remembered.

_**Looking back at my I see that I  
Never really got it right  
I never stopped to think of you  
I'm always wrapped up in things I cannot win**_

"I didn't think so. Now unfreeze this place and let me leave."

"Let you leave?" Yami asked skeptically. "I can't do that, Yuugi. You are my hikari. Light cannot survive without Darkness, and Darkness cannot survive without Light."

"You say that as if it's true," Yuugi said cynically. "But you and I both know that is complete and utter bullshit. In reality, light can survive. Darkness only blots out the purity of light." A hard glare directed at the ancient pharaoh made him cringe again. "And light will forever flourish without the black of the Shadows…"

"Don't be silly, Yuugi. Of course Light and Darkness both need each other. One cannot survive without the other," Yami repeated.

"Then you should have thought about Ryou and Malik before you Mind Crushed Marik and Bakura. They're Lights, are they not?"

Hn. Yami had never thought of it like that.

"Gee…if you wanted to spite and destroy my life, you should learn not to start killing off your own friends. So if your survival theory is true, then wouldn't Ryou and Malik die?"

Yami thought. "They're not going to die," he said simply.

"Then neither will you or I. Live with it."

"But Yuugi. You can't go! You're only seventeen. How will you live out there…running wild in California?"

"I'll have my ways, and I'll have my connections," Yuugi said brusquely, turning. "If your petty apologies, stutters, and commands are quite through, I should be going now."

"Nuh-uh, Yuugi," Yami said sternly. "I told you that you're not leaving Domino."

"And I told you that I am. Now unfreeze the airport or I'll have to do it myself."

"Do it yourself? Aibou, I don't believe you can do that. After all, I _am_ the pharaoh, and the Master of the Shadows." (What did that have anything to do with anything? O-O)

_**What I really meant to say  
Is I'm sorry for the way I am  
I never meant to be so cold  
Never meant to be so cold…  
What I really meant to say  
Is I'm sorry for the way I am  
I never meant to be so cold  
Never meant to be so cold…**_

Scoffing, Yuugi snapped his fingers. The world unfroze. (Yeah, randomness, randomness, why art thou randomness…here? He suddenly has the ability. The end.) "You learn things when you hang out with a thief and a klepto," he said simply. "Especially when the thief knows his magical abilities as well as his thieving ones. Good-bye, Yami, good-bye everyone. I hope to never see you, any of you, ever again." He sounded cheerfully bitter.

"No, Yuugi! Please, please don't!" Yami said this quietly, hoping not to attract any attention. People were already staring at him- or more specifically at the dried blood splattered all over his face. "Just tell me, Yuugi. Tell me what you want. I've said I'm sorry, I've said I was bad. What do you want? I'll give you anything. I'll give you a gift! Anything, Yuugi, anything!"

Yuugi didn't turn to face Yami again. Instead, he spoke placidly, emotions and feelings bottled up. "Sometimes the best gift is the gift of never seeing you again." And with that, he walked up to the escalator, stepping onto it and letting it whisk him away. (I DO NOT OWN THIS QUOTE. I ripped it off from House! Y'know…that hospital show on channel 11. He's so funny, and sarcastic…and one assy, cynical doctor. Heh heh… My point is…I do not own this quote!)

Yami stood frozen (not literally Xp).

"Well," Anzu's voice came, "go after him!" (Isn't it strange how NONE of them talked throughout the entire conversation? X3)

Yami looked back at the group uncertainly. "Should I?" he asked.

"No," Malik stated bluntly. Honda shuffled his feet, Jou shrugged, Ryou looked down, and Anzu looked determined.

"No," Ryou said finally, agreeing with Malik. "What he said…Yuugi… You should give him some time. And if he can match your powers, and break the frozen thing you did to the airport, I wouldn't want to see him blow up if you keep…stalking him…" (Crazy, stalking Yami... /sigh/)

Yami took this into account. "I-I guess you're right… I'll wait…a while before going after him, then…"

_**I never really wanted you to go  
So many things you should have known  
I guess for me there's no hope  
I never meant to be so cold**_

Cold by Crossfade  
(Do you really think I wrote any of that? XP Me does not own.)

**/ - Memoir, Kaiba Mokuba - /**

I don't believe it. I don't believe anything, really. It's as if my life is a…tragic fairy tale. My life. Now that's an…elaborate…subject, so to say. The chapters of my past go on and on, filled with heartbreak, conspiracy, joys, and as unusual as it is, magic. Seto always said magic was all mumbo jumbo, but now I, now both of us, believe it's kind of…plausible, when you think about it. I mean, there's the whole Yami, Egyptian, Sennen Item thing going on…

But the last few months have been the most intricate of my life, give or take a few events. Why, you ask? Because I've made two unexpected…acquaintances? No, there's a stronger word for them. Do I dare say it? Friends? Well, I've said it. I've made two dubious amities (That's the old title. XP Yay!). Ryou and Malik's yamis, Bakura and Marik. You may be asking, why would Mokuba Kaiba, younger brother of Seto Kaiba, CEO of Kaiba Corp, befriend two sadistic, maybe even insane, darks?

They saved my life. (Oooohh…so sagely! Heh heh… These author's notes really ruin the moments. -.- I'll stop now. Bye-bye.)

**.x: _Flashback_ :x.**

Mokuba frowned. "Seto, why don't you just go make some friends? They're really reaching out to you, but you just act all cold towards them and push them away."

It was the night after the entire Atlantis-sinking event. Everyone who wasn't Seto had gone to some club. As usual, he declined- coldly- and left immediately.

Seto didn't turn. Instead, the click clack click of laptop keys quickened as the raven-haired boy's brother continued typing. "No, Mokuba. I don't need their friendship. I have a company to run, and geeks to eschew."

The frown deepened. "They're not geeks and you know it," he said sternly. "Now go unfurl yourself from that cold, little cocoon of yours and make some friends."

Seto gave an unfitting bark of laughter. "Don't try to act stern with me, like that, Mokie," he said, still sniggering. "You know I'm the man." (O-O A little OOCness…)

Mokuba sighed. Sometimes, his brother was one heck of a stubborn butt. "I'm going out for a walk, Seto. I'll be back in half an hour."

"Aw, c'mon, Mokuba," Seto said soothingly. "I was just kidding- even though I am the man."

"…" Mokuba couldn't stay mad at his brother. "I know you are, onii-san," he said finally. "I just need some air to think…" And so the second heir of Kaiba Corp stepped out of he and his brother's estate and out into the street.

The frosty wind bit at his skin, making him shudder and grateful that he was wearing a long-sleeved shirt. The only lights in the block were the tall, green posts at the corners of the sidewalks. Moths and other fluttering insects of the night, entranced by the flickering luminosity, danced around the sheltered bulb.

Soon, the young Kaiba was completely out of the neighborhood. He had reached town, and the rest of civilization. There were tons of shops and buildings, including Burger Worlds, the Kaiba Corporation building, and random business structures. He marveled at all the city lights, seeing an almost Paris-like twinkle in his very own hometown of Domino.

What did he really want to get away from? Nothing, really. But this little stroll through the town was truly refreshing. Mokuba smiled good-naturedly and stuffed his hands into his pockets.

The sudden squeal of screeching tires filled the air, making Mokuba jump in surprise. Loud, wailing sirens followed, screaming their warning of the mad chase. Mokuba backed further into the brick wall behind him as he surveyed the road before him. With its exhaust pipe smoking, one very old, sad-looking car squealed by, its rubber tires marking the concrete. A panda police car skidded after it, blue and red rolling and wailing loudly.

By the looks of it, the criminal's car was waaayyy in the lead. It was at least seven or eight shops ahead of the cop car, and was gaining speed after each passing second.

Tires shrieked as the old car started to lose its speed. Mokuba vaguely wondered why, when the passenger's door was flung open, extracting a tall, but scrawny man from its shadowed insides. He looked around, his neck twisting around at the speed of an owl, until his foggy, brown eyes latched with Mokuba's gray.

Without leading his own feet, Mokuba took a subconscious step back, his back flat against the wall.

"Uh-uh," the man said quickly. "You come with us." He made a rush for Mokuba and dragged him into the still-moving car. It was a huge surprise that the police still hadn't caught up yet.

Mokuba squirmed, but stopped when the cold, steel barrel of a gun was pressed against the side of his head.

"COME OUT WITH YOUR HANDS UP OR WE WILL HAVE TO RESORT TO VIOLENCE!" came the police's warning through a (one of those funnel-shaped thingies that make your voice really loud- whaddaya call 'em?).

The man holding the gun to Mokuba's head used his free hand to dial a few numbers into a cell phone beside him. "We've got a hostage, coppies, you can't shoot us." He laughed cruelly, shoving the barrel harder into Mokuba's head, making him cry out in pain.

The cops must of heard Mokuba through the connection. "OKAY. FINE. DON'T SHOOT ANYONE. WE CAN TALK THIS OUT."

The man and the driver laughed. "Talk this out?" the man said into the phone. "Hah!"

BANGERS-MALANGERS

A small, whirring bullet hit the side mirror of the car, shattering it.

"Aw HELL no," the man with the gun said angrily. "Those fuckers don't know when to give up. Well, say sayonara, little boy." The trigger clicked as the man slowly began to pull it. "Well, coppies," he said into the cell phone, "we warned you. Now this little boy right here- well, let's just say I'll need to open the windows, because his brains'll go splattering everywhere!"

"STOP!"

Mokuba shivered. "Iie…onegai… Stop," he pleaded.

"Damare!" the man snapped. "I'm holding the gun here, shorty. You're in no position to make the orders here."

SCREEE! The car screeched to a halt, making the man and Mokuba, who was in a headlock, lean forward and hit their heads on the backs of the driver/passenger seats.

"Damn it!" the man yelled angrily at the driver. "Why the HELL did you stop, you ninny? Afraid? Backin' out?"

"Shut up, you. There's something out in the road!"

"You're telling me you can shoot three people, but you can't run over someone?"

"It's…not human!"

"Yeah, and it's so much easier to run over a dog. Now. GO!"

"But it—" The driver yelled loudly as the windshield before him shattered. The whole car seemed to flatten, breaking every other window, making the three people in the car freeze. "Something's attacking the car. It's like some sort of monster!"

Mokuba thought quickly. Risk trying to escape, only to be confronted by some sort of monster outside? Or stay inside the car and eventually die because the madmen have guns? He took the first choice.

Quickly wriggling from the gunman's limp and shocked grip, he flipped himself out of the car window (thank Kami-sama he was still young and small), wincing slightly as the jagged glass sliced through his long sleeves. He fell onto the road on his back and stood up automatically. Where the hell were the police? (I know, huh? XP Where are they…?)

"Men!" He heard yelling. "Retreat! They've got some sort of monster on their side!"

"No! Someone go get backup!"

Darn it! Mokuba thought to himself. They're running away! They think the monster that attacked us is the crooks' ally!

Oh well. There was nothing Mokuba could do against brain-dead cops who thought a monster who smashed the crooks' car was their ally. He began to run towards the police vehicles.

"Not so fast, squirt." An arm wrapped around Mokuba's neck again. "Think you can run away? Well you can't. Why don't we feed you to the beast, eh?"

"Lemme go," Mokuba snarled, squirming again. It wasn't until the cool metal of a gun pressed against his temple that he stopped.

The trigger clicked again (I don't know how guns work, so…sorry. Did I just write that Mokuba was shot? Or that it made that clicking noise right before you shoot someone?). "Hm, didn't think so." The man swung him around to face the horrible creature that had wrecked the car.

Mokuba gasped in a petrified recognition. The bug-like creature's glowing, lantern eyes glared at the crooks, dull green, armoured body trembling in an evident gesture of bloodlust. Horrible blade-like talons protruded from the beast's armoured feet and hands, swiping threateningly at the air around it. The Man-Eater Bug tossed its silver-horned head back as it shrieked with a vengeance.

The driver of the car was already running down the street, past the Bug, screaming and flailing his arms madly.

The gunman scoffed. "Wuss," he muttered to himself as he surveyed the monster unfalteringly. "Well, say hello to Monster-san!"

"Hello, Monster-san," said a voice directly behind the duo. Mokuba shivered at how close and familiar the sadistic voice was. Such distortion in what a regular voice would sound like.

"What?" the man turned, only to be greeted by a bronze fist smashing into his face. "Ahckk!"

He dropped Mokuba, who landed on his feet, and held his face in agony.

Marik, the owner of the distorted voice and dark fist, grinned down at Mokuba and recited, "Man-Eater Bug. Flip effect: destroys one monster on the field regardless of position."

Mokuba was lost for words. "T-t-thank you…" he stammered, surprised that the man who one tried to kill Yuugi, Yami, Seto, and every other duelist on the blimp at Battle City, had just saved his life.

But the Man-Eater Bug was not his specialty…

"Hey, it's Kaiba's brat," came a very distinct voice from atop the beast's back. Mokuba couldn't comprehend why he hadn't seen him earlier. The pure snow-white, spiked-up hair of the crimson-eyed darkness had a sort of magical glow to it in the black of night.

"Bakura?" Mokuba asked. "Is that thing…yours?"

"Yup," Bakura said proudly, patting the Bug as it…cooed.

"Is it—are you gonna sick it on me…?" he asked.

Marik laughed and placed his arm around Mokuba's shoulders. For some reason, he felt no strange flittering or prickle of danger at the Egyptian's gesture. "Of course not, Kuba-chan." (Stupid, silly name for Mokuba-chan. XP)

Mokuba arched an eyebrow. "Why?" he asked curiously.

"You're my bestest buddy in the whole entire world!" Marik chirped cheerfully, glomping Mokuba as Bakura laughed his ass off.

Little did Mokuba know, Marik was only half-kidding. Because of course, Bakura was Marik's 'bestest buddy in the whole entire world,' and as Mokuba would later learn, Yuugi had become his 'bestest buddy in the whole world.' So that made Mokuba his 'bestest buddy in the world.' Go figure, huh?

**.x: _End flashback_ :x.**

I can't get past the fact that Yami had Mind Crushed them. I know that Seto-nii forbids me to swear, but…he's not here, and he can't hear my thoughts… What the fucking hell was that bastard thinking? Had he gone senile over the past 5000 years? Had he gone insane and attacked them for no apparent reason?

I shuffle over to Seto-nii and stare into his cerulean pools of neutral uninterest. "Onii-san," I say cautiously. I know that he's crushed by the…Crushing, too. Bakura and Marik were some of his closest friends- because he doesn't have many, dare I say it- and now they're gone. I doubt he wants anyone to know, but he's really protective over us: Yuugi, Bakura, Marik, and me. He pays for Bakura and Marik's schoolbooks when they lose or…destroy their books, and he also gets them out of jams with the…law.

But now they're gone forever, and Yuugi's left for California. We have a summer home over there (we offered it to him, but he politely repudiated, deciding to do some things on his own), and we hope to visit him sometime. I just wonder how everyone's doing, and how they'll keep up. Yuugi really relied on them for 'friendly' times neither Seto-nii nor I could give him; Seto-nii had really opened up to them (he even gave them their own rooms), and without them, I would have most probably died. So…that's my account for their friendship. What's yours? (Probably filled with bishies, ne? n-n)

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

Killah: Thazz Mokuba's memoir. B00m!

Mokuba: Yay! I'm important- the whole second half of the chapter is centered on me!

Seto: . /is currently glaring at Killah/ You nearly killed my brother.

Gunman: Nuh-uh, that was me. n-n

Killah: Yeah, blame him, Seto.

Mokuba: . /looking at gunman/ Hey, aren't you that guy from the Midori restaurant?

Gunman: I got fifty dollars bonus for appearing here in this fic! n-n

**3,287** words. Va-va-voom! Not as long as its prior…

**I** do not own COLD by CROSSFADE. I did not take it as my own, merely _borrowed_ it. n-n Don't delete my story, T-T

**The** seventh and final chapter is up next! Watch out for _Epilogue: Growth_.

**Poll: **What do you want me to do with Ryou and Malik? (Everyone loves these two bishies n-n I can't let them rot with Yami's dream team...unless you vote for me to!)

A- Leave them both with Yami's dream team

B- Make them both make up with Yuugi

C- Pick ..:fill in the blank with one of those bishies:.., un-Yami-fy him, and re-Yuugi-fy him! (You pick which bishy!)

**Review** and the ebil bunni-s won't come and haunt you in your sleep. Every time you fail to review, I set free a little, happy, EBIL bunni. n-n Watch out…they're coming…BWUHAHAHAHAHA!


	7. Epilogue: Growth

Everyone's Anti-Valentine  
It's okay. n-n As long as you review. O-O /giggles maniacally/ Reviews…so precious…MINE…! It's a real pirdy song, ne? Here's the chapter! It's funny that the first chapter of the sequel is already finished…before this chapter's even posted… Let me just upload this one, and the sequel's up in like…five or ten minutes. Or a day… /cough/ It depends on the reviews. /sniffs along with you/ Yes, the sound of fist again Yami's flesh is just too…as you said, beautiful.

I-Shave-Clowns  
Ooohh…right, megaphone. Thanks! Those things are scary, though. When you play a CD in the mouthpiece, it sounds like crap… It's all…yeah; it makes the song sound moronic and high-pitched-y, and static-y. Thanks for reviewing! He's the next chapter.

**NubianQueen413  
**/is like, YAY, and catches the popcorn/ Mmm…popcorn thrown out of distaste… Yum. n-n /nods encouragingly/ Good job! Keep up the Yami-bashing frenzy! XJ The Anzu-ness gets to everyone… /le gasp/ You hear voices too? Mine tell me to play with the green lighter we use for the 4th of July. n-n Unfortunately, it's out of fuel. /sigh/ Anywhais- thanks for voting!

**Insane-panda  
**Yeah, they seem to be everyone's favorite bishies now. X-x It must be because I killed 'em off the fic. XP Thanks for the review! . /huggles/

**Darkmistressofyaoi  
**XP Yuugi shall befriend them, then! I'll take your suggestion and raise you this chapter. O-o Poker moment, excuse me. /sulks in a corner for a few minutes/ Okay- I'm back. You're bishies are- voila! . /opens up a box/ . /box is…empty/ …you're bishes are not coming. XP

… (again XP)  
/giggle/ It's okay, my …-buddy! n-n Okay then, now I know how to write out how to click-er-ma-jig a gun. Aw'right- thanks for voting! . /huggles/ Here's the chapter!

…**  
**Holy crap, that's one long review. Okay, sorry…moving on. Thank you for the constructive criticism; I appreciate it if I want to continue this fic with some people's liking. I will certainly add the warnings of OOC-ness (I had it in the first two or three chapters, I guess I stopped) and senseless bashing. There is no actually kleptoship pairing, but I suppose there are hints, unseen by my own eye. I know the characters in my story don't necessarily see eye-to-eye with their anime counterparts, and I'm sorry for that. My story will never happen in reality, and…yes… I will try to get the characters more into character, with remorse and such in the sequel, but this chapter's already written out on paper in its OOC-ness. Again, thank you for the criticism and suggestions on how to improve the story.

**DreamCherry66  
**I did? 0-0? Ohhh...then I must have forgotten… /shifty eyes/ They kinda ruin the moments and all, but I can't resist blabbing… /giggle/ I don't think I'll ever stop. O-o It's a serious problem… /le gaspioges/ XP Well, my ego needed a little inflating after I sucked at volleyball practice- so yes! THANK J00! . /chuckle/ Oh- yeah, I've got back up on Word. If my story ever gets deleted (/screams in agony and pain and all that other crap/), then I'll just upload everything again. But I'll never…be…the…SAME! . /all dramatic like in a bad soap opera/ I just hope this story'll never be deleted. /sigh/ This is the most reviews I've ever gotten, even though it's just a minute amount, compared to other people. /giggle/ Sorry to laugh…but ninny is a funny word. XP

**Slave Of Darkness  
**Yeah, I heard it once, and I already loved it after the first verse! I especially made the scene fit in with the song so I could add it in. Y'know, with the night-after-the-bar thing, the Yami-saying-something-superior-when-he-really-wanted-to-say-sorry thing, and the…not-wanting-Yuugi-to-go thing. Yeah, Yuugi-boi learns from the masters!

Bakura: That's me! n-n /snaps fingers and summons some sheep/

Yeah… /sigh/ I had Moku-chan at gunpoint. /giggle/ And where everyone stared at him 'cause he had all that blood everywhere. XP Yeah- totally, I've done it. Probably more than you. HAH! I beat j00! BWUHAHAHAHA! . /cough/ And my family thinks I'm crazy when I laugh AND cry when on the computer. X-x Then they come over and try to read what I'm reading… Hn…I should keep my diabolical plans that are pointed towards MYSELF to me and my muses…strictly prohibited to the reviewers who can easily use them against me if I don't update… /shudders/

Warning: I am a humungous idiot! n-n Fun, eh? So much OOC-ness, you'd think this were and AU. n-n Ooooh- and Yami and his gang's senseless bashings! I've stopped the swearing, so it's just lower than mild, I suppose. AND EBIL-BISHY-WORSHIPPING. BWUHAHAHAHA!

**/ - Memoir 2, the Yuuginator - /**

Yuugi's boots sunk into the golden sand of the island as he stared avidly at the horizon line. Tints of gold and ginger painted the skies, reflected, and bounced off the ocean's rushing waves as the sun peeked out its glowing head.

"I-I guess the world's saved from the forces of evil again, Yami," Yuugi spoke, tittering weakly.

"Yes, Aibou," Yami agreed, placing a transparent hand on his hikari's shoulder.

Yuugi beamed as an unseen warmth radiated into his system, tingling his skin.

"Yuugi." Yami placed both hands on Yuugi's shoulders and bore his crimson lanterns into Yuugi's amethyst orbs. "I want to thank you for what you did for be in the Valley of—"

"Think nothing of it," Yuugi interrupted promptly.

"But I can't! After I ignored you in that duel with Raphael, and your soul was sacrificed to the Great Beast, I realized that you were the greatest thing in my life. I couldn't bear to lose you. I went reckless and wild without you. When I saw you at the Valley, I was extatic. Then we dueled…and I lost you again…"

"But Yami, you were supposed to beat me. I represented the darkness in your heart. In order to move on, you had to destroy the darkness."

"Which is why I want to thank you. Without you, I would have still been plagued with the darkness. And I'm sorry. I'm so, very sorry for ignoring you in that duel with Raphael. I should have believed in the Heart of the Cards instead of sinking low enough to play the Seal of Orichalcos. Will you forgive me?"

Yuugi looked up at the spirit incredulously. Did he really think Yuugi would be one to harbor a grudge against him? "Of course I will, Yami."

"Thank you, Aibou." Yuugi gasped in surprise when Yami pulled him into a tight embrace. The spirit buried his face into Yuugi's crown of black and ruby spikes. There was a sudden flash of vibrant, golden light. It engulfed Yami's entire body and grew brighter until Yuugi had to shut his eyes from the intensity. Then, the light began to diminish.

Instead of warmth pressed against Yuugi's body, there was weight. The shorter duelist staggered back in surprise, causing Yami to lose his balance and fall…on his hikari.

"Aishiteru, Aibou," Yami mumbled into Yuugi's hair.

"Th-thank you, Yami." Did he hurt his Yami's feelings by not returning the gesture of love? He loved his dark- like a brother. It was no deeper than that. (Aw- were you yaoi lovers waiting for some hot money love? XP)

Yami didn't seem to mind. He just buried his nose deeper into Yuugi's spikes.

Suddenly, there was a huge gust of wind, and a loud, chopping noise in the air. Sand blew everywhere, creating strangely shaped sand dunes that were then blown away again by the intensifying gust. When the heavy winds subsided, the two tricolor-haired figures were completely buried in sand.

Yuugi coughed and shoved the clinging dark off his form. He sat up and ran a hand through his hair to get rid of any extra sand. Standing up, he brushed himself off and looked down at Yami.

The said sprit-turned-human was on his side, fast asleep, and trying to hug sand.

Yuugi chuckled and was about to nudge the older teen awake when arms suddenly wrapped around his neck. The violet-eyed teen gasped out in surprise and fell forward on his stomach.

"Darling! Are you all right?"

"Hallo, Rebecca," Yuugi said, giggling dizzily as the younger blonde hastily scrambled off her 'darling.'

"Don't you use that tone with me, Yuugi Mutou! Your soul was locked away for who-knows-how-long and that's all you can say? Are you all right? Any brain damage? What's my name? How many fingers am I holding up?"

"Shhhh." Yuugi placed both hands on her shoulders. "Yes, yes, no, Rebecca, and four."

"Oh darling! You're all right!" Rebecca glomped the tricolor-haired duelist.

Yuugi's face turned beet red. …Especially when the entire gang came into his view.

"Nya-nya!" Otogi catcalled good-naturedly.

"Oh shut up, dice boy," Rebecca snapped, letting go of Yuugi and glaring at Otogi. "I'd like to see your koi!"

Yuugi smiled apologetically and shrugged weakly from behind Rebecca's back to Anzu, who was fuming silently.

"You're half his age, little girl," Otogi taunted.

"Oh yeah? Well I can still pack a punch, dice boy!"

"Um…guys…?"

"Shh, Yuug'," Jou said soothingly. "I wanna see where dis goes."

"I can see the headlines now," Honda said. "'Little Girl Beats Up Maker of DDM!'"

"…" Yuugi chuckled.

"Boo!" Someone discreetly pounced at him from behind, placing their arms around his neck. No one else seemed to notice.

"Can't…breathe…"

"Oops." The person let go.

"Guys?" Everyone looked in Yuugi's direction and Rebecca and Otogi ended their little quarrel. "Look at Yami!"

The said dark jumped out from behind Yuugi's form, giggling.

"…" Yuugi sweatdropped. "I guess he's a bit hyper for some reason…"

Everyone gasped.

"He's-"

"You're-"

"How-"

"Whoa. Is it just me, or am I seeing double?" Oh, that's right… Otogi didn't know about the Sennen Items, the yamis, or anything else.

Anzu, Jou, and Honda exchanged wary looks. They then blasted into a carefully worded explanation. Rebecca and Otogi listened with looks of awe on their faces. (I'm really just going by the American dubbed version, you know, but using Japanese names and terms. XC Duke didn't know about anything, really, and Rebecca knew about Yami, the Puzzle, and the origin of Duel Monsters from Prof. Hawkins. Anzu, Jou, and Honda are explaining EVERYTHING- Duelist Kingdom, Shadi, etc. /sigh/ My first author's note and it's not even me acting stupid. /sigh/)

As the three explained, Yami hugged Yuugi again. "I'll never lose you. I'll never ever let you go. I'll never ignore you, or your opinions, and I'll make sure you're always safe all I time. I promise, Yuugi."

"I know you will, Yami."

**.x: _End Flashback_ :x.**

A bitter snort escapes from my nose. How naïve I was back then. I actually believed and trusted that _filth_ who served the purpose of my darkness. Wasn't I an idiot? But I was set straight…eventually.

The night right after my dark's big event, after he'd calmed and sobered up, I learned of the true intentions of my _'friends' _comradeship. They had apparently stayed my friends because I was the oh-so-great pharaoh's vessel, an insignificant shadow brooding behind his glorious greatness. And there I was, all that time, encouraging Anzu's friendship speeches and actually believing that when they stood up for me, it was because they cared about me. But they just wanted the body the real Yuugiou inhabited to be safe, it seems.

I wave away a flight attendant and try to place my bags up into the overhead compartments. Guess who feels like a really short, weak idiot? I can't even reach the Ra-damned luggage rack.

I mutter a short 'arigatou' to the attendant I had earlier shooed away when she takes the bag from me. She smiles in what she apparently thinks is a calm and gracious way, placing the knapsack I had received from Seto up into the luggage rack. She's laughing at me, isn't she? …Probably wondering what a ten-year-old is doing all alone on a flight to California…

I take an aisle seat and vaguely even hear the safety precautions and my thoughts again drift back to life.

How had it all ended up like this? Why is it that I'm running from my home? Why is it that I can't even confront the other part of my _soul_ after what he'd done? Not just the annihilation of my friends' souls- the alienation from the people I loved and trusted. Why is it that _I_ was the one who received this kind of treatment? Am I that wimpy? Weak? Worthless? (Whoa- those all start with 'w'. That is seriously crazy. O-o I think I ruined the moment again…) Well that's all going to end. (Yup, it's affirmed: Killah-baka has ruined the moment. X-x)

I shake my head of all thoughts as the flight seemed to begin its aerial gradient. Everyone is talking in loud, casual voices, without a care in the world. An occasional stressed-out voice, talking through a black cell phone about charts, data, and all of those other business things, but that's it. A movie had started, maybe a minute or five earlier, but I pay it no heed.

My eyes slowly begin to drop, and darkness surrounds me. Something about planes always gets to me, I don't know why…

**.x:_ Flashback_ :x.**

"Welly welly welly well… What are you doing here after school, Mutou?"

Yuugi scowled. It was just like the stupid oaf to ask questions at the worst possible time. "I have business to attend to with Hibiki (Heh heh… It's a Ranma ½ name- yay). Now if you'll excuse me, I'd really like to get going."

"Speaking of a teacher so casually, are we? Well we'll just have to correct that." A smirk played on the hall monitor's lips, a look that suited him, albeit making him look even more gorilla-like. "No Katsuya Jounouchi or Hiroto Honda to protect you. Now that I think of it, I never got my 200,000 yen…" (He just can't let that go, can he? O-o)

Yuugi rolled his eyes, scowl easily sliding off his features. "That was- what?- one or two years ago. Let it go, Ushio. Besides, even if you were stupid enough to come at me and beat me into submission like you did before, I swear it won't be like that this time. You no longer daunt me."

Ushio looked down at him in confusion before the stupid-looking feature slid off his face. "You don't have your precious Yami to protect you," he reminded, waggling his eyebrows. (Yeah, whatever. Everyone in the school knows about Yami (since he's a sophomore, after all…), so…whatever.)

Yuugi glowered at Ushio, eyes hardened and lips curled malevolently. "I don't need him," he spit out vituperatively, hair possibly spiking up along with the force of his voice.

"Of course you do, Mutou," Ushio said easily, waving around a large hand. He himself saw how much this subject plucked Yuugi's nerve, and used that to his advantage. "You need anyone who'll help you. After all, you are a weak, worthless runt." He smirked.

Yuugi continued to glare up at Ushio, the hate that had been bottled up for days, building up in his gut. Weak…worthless…runt… "I am not a runt, you damn idiot," he snapped brusquely, taking a step forward. "Now if you don't shut up and leave me on my way, I swear I will make you."

Ushio cracked into an amused smile. "You? Make me? Honestly, Mutou, you've gotten even stranger than the last time we met. You and I both know you can't take me on. You're nothing but a nuisance to earth itself. I mean, what can you do? I bet you can't even reach the top of the refrigerator."

Yuugi gave out a low growl. "I said to get out of my way, Ushio." I'm not short. I'm perfectly fine. I'm not weak. Even though I can't really reach the cabinet…

"Give me my 200,000 yen," Ushio said simply. "Then you can pass."

"I'd rather give you what you deserve," Yuugi sneered. He plunged his hand into his pocket and pulled out his wand. (xPP I had Harry Potter on the brain. Sorry. XPP Let me redo that sentence…) He plunged his hand into his pocket and pulled out a small-sized dagger with engraved vines slithering their way around its golden hilt. "Now move."

Ushio's eyes widened in surprise before narrowing. He pulled out his own knife and flashed it before his face. "Remember this?" He stuck out his tongue to complete the old image that once plagued Yuugi's worries one or two years ago.

If anyone were to see this certain scene at the time, they would see two high schoolers a few feet apart in amateur battle stances of sorts, with knives in their hands, pointed threateningly at each other.

"You won't hit me," Ushio said smugly, brandishing his knife threateningly. "You don't have the gut to, Mutou. After all, kids shouldn't play with-" He was silenced when Yuugi's blade came soaring through the air in a downward motion, embedding itself into his shoe. Fortunately, it only reached the toe of his boot, about a centimeter from where his toes wiggled. (O-O) "Fuck!"

A feral smirk played across Yuugi's pink lips. "I don't have the gut, Ushio?" He revealed another dagger, this one engraved with a pillar. "I believe I do. The question is: Are you willing to stick around to find out?" He tossed the dagger skillfully, delicately plucking it out of the air and tracing the blade of the knife with his index finger. "Now move, Ushio." He pointed to the sidewalk road behind Ushio, eyes flickering as a small sliver of crimson of blood trickled down his palm and to his wrist.

Ushio eyed and glowered at Yuugi one last time before ripping the knife from his shoe, tossing it at the shorter teen's feet, and stomping off.

Yuugi smirked, a dark satisfaction radiating from his flickering amethysts. He popped both daggers into the back pockets of his school uniform, air of innocence redecorating his features, before taking a left at Ushio's former path to Hibiki's office.

Along the way, he spotted two tall sophomores from his homeroom class, each leaning on a support beam on either side of the path. The first had palely pigmented hair that cascaded down his broad shoulders, spiking at the top to form a pair of rather pointed rabbit ears, and within the folds of his hair were strands of soft lavender. He had fairly pale skin that accentuated his slanted, blood red eyes.

The second, aside from his homicidal-looking scarlet eyes, was the complete opposite. He had spiked, gravity-defying hair (slightly similar to Yuugi's) the color of pale, golden sand. Black kohl lines his feral eyes, bringing out the psychotic gleam and enhancing the deep bronze skin of the Egyptian.

Yuugi froze once his eyes locked with Yami no Bakura's. Sure, he could take on Ushio, the well-built bastard who had taunted him for far too long, but Bakura and Marik were another thing. First of all, Ushio was human- and had some humane in him. Second of all, Bakura and Marik probably had more weapons on them than the U.S. Navy and Secret Service combined. Third of all, Yuugi had a newfound courage, sense of defiance, and bottled hatred towards Yami and his ex-friends…not a death wish.

Yuugi stood there, looking back and forth between the two darks for a good minute before Marik spoke.

"We're not going to jump you when you pass, you know," the blonde stated, his tone cool and neutral. "We're only after the Ra damned pharaoh, and contrary to prior belief, we don't kill for our of personal enjoinment."

Yuugi eyed Marik with cautious apprehension. "How about torture? Do you torture for your personal enjoyment?"

"Occasionally…" Bakura shrugged nonchalantly, though failing to stifle the not-quite-sane grin and the 'I-like-torture' expression on his face.

"Um…well…carry on with your…loitering…" He hurried off a little too quickly, mentally scolding himself for showing his former weakness. If he wanted to prove his worth, he'd have to buckle down and show no weakness at all.

As Yuugi rounded the corner, he vaguely heard Bakura's proverbial voice.

"If he had rotated his wrist a bit to the left, he could have pinned the bottom of Ushio's right leg hole into the cement."

"Yes," Marik agreed, "but he'd need some force in his downward spiraling. Otherwise, he's pretty good- for a hikari."

**x: _End Flashback_ :x.**

(Flashback summary: Yuugi currently hates Yami and co. and shows this off with a cold defiance towards Ushio, wishing to show no weakness at all. Bakura and Marik take a sudden interest in Yuugi (not that way, silly xP ...though I hope somewhere out there in an alternate universe is another me writing a yaoi story like this /drools/) and his skill with a blade.)

**.x: _Flashback Slideshow _:x.**

Yuugi is shown in a room with Marik and Bakura. Both darks have long dirks in their grips while Yuugi has his pair of engraved daggers. It seems as if they're teaching him how to properly use them (as if he didn't already).

Next up, Bakura is bound to a chair, his hands tied behind his back, with Marik laughing his ass off and brandishing a bottle of neon green hair dye at him. Yuugi is staring apprehensively at Marik's less-than-sane behavior and Bakura's homicidal threats. He then breaks into a smile and joins the…'frenzy.' Looks like he's beginning to fit in.

Soon, Yuugi is shown spending more and more time with the two darks. He's absorbed some of their murderous traits, and dropped the whole leather infatuation. Instead, he stuck with plain, baggy, black sweats. He soon finds out that both Bakura and Marik live at the Kaiba Estate (for reasons unexplained to him, though Mokuba and Seto acted sort of grateful for the first few weeks or so) and even befriends the dueling dragon and his little brother.

Lastly, for about a minute, the slideshow of memories ends, instead to be replaced by photo snap shots. Bakura and Marik are teaching Yuugi how to control his Shadow Magic. Seto is hiding behind the couch, uncharacteristically giggling, holding a bottle of pink dye, while Yuugi and Mokuba run around the mansion looking for a mirror.

**.x: _End Slideshow _:x.**

(Undo the memoir, 'cause he's asleep and can't narrate. xPP) All in all, Yuugi's dreams (or subconscious memories, whatever) were quite pleasant. A smile graced his lips and he snuggled further into the cushioned seat.

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

Killah: The end! . /cackles/ It was awesome while it lasted. n-n

Yami: . /sighs in relief/ Yeessss… About time this stupid thing ended.

Killah: HAH! It's not over yet! WATCH OUT FOR THE SEQUEL! . /spits at Yami's feet/

**3,608** words. Sorry if this chapter seems sort of rushed. I finished it at 11:45 p.m. on my birthday, so I could upload it before 12:00 a.m. YAY! I had fun. We went to Knott's with my friends. XPP I got wet. I'll stop talking now… /slinks away/

**Review **for a birthday present? Virtual funnel cake for everyone! X3 And the more reviews I get, the faster I'll post the sequel. /wink/

**THIS CHAPTER HAD BEEN EDITED ON NOVEMBER 19, 2005, 9:17 A.M. DUE TO THE CHANGE IN SEQUEL PLOT- NOTHING DARASTIC TO YOU EARLY READERS, JUST DELETION OF THE MYSTERIOUS POV, FOR NOW THAT THE SEQUEL HAS A DIFFERENT PLOT, THE POV HAS NO POINT. THANK YOU FOR READING THIS ANNOUNCEMENT. BUH-BYE NOW. Please also note the word count has decreased, so the number of words above is inaccurate.**

**---**

**Okay… THIS CHAPTER HAS BEEN EDITED AGAIN ON DECEMBER 4, 2004, 1:01 P.M BECAUSE THE SHADOW GUY'S POV HAS BEEN DELETED. SCREW HIM, HE'S GONE. BUH-BYE NOW.**

**I wonder if anyone knew who he was? To those who had read it, and didn't know, it was Marik. n.n Wait, no- don't screw him, I lurves Marik!. /huggles/**


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